A week after his son was imprisoned for the teen murder of another, a man fatally stabbed his sister with a samurai sword.
In Fartown, Huddersfield, West Yorkshire, Sandra Harriott and their 80-year-old mother lived in a house where Roger Harriott, 56, killed her in a “brutal, vicious and merciless attack.”
Less than two weeks had passed since Harriott’s son, Jovani Harriott, 17, was sentenced to life in prison for the stabbing death of 15-year-old Khayri McLean while walking home from school.
According to Leeds Crown Court, Harriott and his sister had a “toxic” relationship and had a falling out over their mother’s Alzheimer’s care.
He had informed police that Ms. Harriott “would not be getting her hands on their mother’s money” when he was arrested three weeks prior to the murder on suspicion of defrauding his mother.
The court heard that since 2020, 56-year-old Ms. Harriott had been “living in fear” of her brother.
He verbally and physically assaulted her, even spitting in her face once and driving erratically towards her another.
It was reported that Harriott used knives as a weapon of intimidation and had “an interest in knives for some time.”
Because of this, Ms. Harriott carried a personal alarm and, in December 2022, obtained a non-molestation order prohibiting Harriott from approaching her or her residence.
Ms. Harriott informed the court in her application for the order that she “had come to realise how dangerous this man is,” that she “felt uneasy in my mum’s home knowing he could turn up at any time,” and that her brother had weapons “with tragic prescience.”
When Harriott drove ten miles from Bradford to Huddersfield in the wee hours of May 26 of last year, he broke both this order and his bail terms after his arrest for fraud.
According to what the court heard, he waited outside Ms. Harriott’s Ripon Avenue home before 7 a.m. until she emerged, at which point he got out of his car and ran over to her while brandishing a samurai sword.
She can be seen trying to flee from Harriott in the “chilling” CCTV footage of the attack, but he strikes her with the sword eight times, “hacking and slashing” at her after she falls to the ground.
Mr. Hall reported seeing Ms. Harriott “writhing” on the ground and kicking out to protect herself.
The court heard that after turning to go to his car, Harriott stabbed his sister through the chest one last time before turning around.
Ms. Harriott, who had two adult sons, was declared dead in the hospital after attempts at resuscitation failed.
According to Mr. Hall, the accused drove straight to the Huddersfield police station to turn himself in, telling the officers, “I just killed someone, my dad’s daughter, and the weapon is in the car.”
Along with a few other weapons, the 55-cm samurai sword was discovered within the car.
Representing Harriott, Gerald Hendron stated that his client had acknowledged his intention to murder his sister and that a “hostility” had developed between them as a result of their mother’s raising.
The defendant was informed he could not fly because he was going to be arrested on suspicion of fraud just as he was ready to depart the UK for the Gambia, where he had spent a significant amount of time, the court heard.
Concerns had been expressed by the Office of the Public Guardian regarding 134 withdrawals totaling tens of thousands of pounds that “bore no relation to (her) daily needs” from Harriott’s mother’s bank account.
According to what was presented in court, Harriott admitted to police that he had a “toxic” relationship with his sister and that she “would not be getting her hands on (their) mother’s money” when they were questioned about the alleged fraud.
Harriott “genuinely regrets his actions on that day,” according to Mr. Hendron.
After entering a guilty plea to murder, Harriott was given a life sentence with a minimum of 23 years in prison.
Ms. Harriott “had for some years considered you capable of serious violence,” Judge Robin Mairs informed the defendant.
For killing Khayri McLean, Jovani Harriott received a life sentence with a minimum of 18 years in prison.
Harriott and his 15-year-old cousin Jakele Pusey, according to testimony given at Leeds Crown Court, had waited for Khayri in September 2022, hiding behind masks and big knives, and attacked him in front of several other terrified students.
