Yousef Makki Inquest

• Success in Judicial Review quashes Senior Coroner’s decision
• High Court considers His Majesty’s Senior Coroner’s inquiry to be ‘insufficiently distilled’
• Family granted a third chance to seek justice for Yousef Makki

Coroner’s Conclusion Quashed in High Court Decision Reignites Hope of Justice for Yousef Makki

Yousef Makki was killed by a single stab wound to the chest inflicted by Joshua Molnar, a friend, dubbed as a ‘rich kid’. The stabbing took place in the leafy suburb of Hale Barns in March 2019, where Molnar lied to police in the aftermath of the stabbing alleging the perpetrator had made off in a silver hatchback.

Molnar was later charged with the murder and manslaughter of Makki after his recollection of events was questioned by police alongside Adam Chowdhary who was also at the scene. Tragically for the family, Molnar was acquitted of murder and manslaughter at the Crown Court having relied upon an argument of self-defence and the charge against Chowdhary was dropped.

The case attracted significant media attention, which became the subject of a Channel 4 documentary, ‘Killed by a Rich Kid’ which follows the process of the criminal trial and the subsequent inquest proceedings.

In 2021, the family instructed Solicitors Sarah Magson and Sarah Finney (Nee Hepple) at Watson Woodhouse to represent them at an inquest into Makki’s death. An inquest was heard by Alison Mutch, Senior Coroner for Greater Manchester South, in which she ruled out a finding of unlawful killing and accidental death. Mutch instead returned a narrative conclusion that Makki died from “complications from a stab wound the precise circumstances of which cannot, on the balance of probabilities, be ascertained”.

The fight did not stop there however. The family pressed on, asking for the decision to be judicially reviewed in the High Court.

The case was heard before Judges Lady Justice Macur and Mr Justice Fordham, who found that the Coroner had failed to adequately consider the evidence, including an omission of ‘any attempt to analyse the “precise sequence of events” immediately leading to the fatal stabbing’. The High Court also found that ‘there is no explanation of how HMSC’s findings of fact … were relevant to her ultimate determination of the stabbing, and in what respect.’ As such, both Judges agreed that the ‘internal consistency of the conclusion does not identify the ultimate conclusion as ‘Wednesbury reasonable’. Thus, her decision was found to have been so unreasonable, no other reasonable person could have made it. 

The conclusion of the first inquest has now been quashed and a new inquest is directed to take place before a different Coroner. 

The decision made in the High Court will hopefully pave the way for future challenges of coronial decisions where the Coroner fails to openly address the totality of the evidence, and the family and Watson Woodhouse are delighted to have seen success.

Sights are now firmly set on a fresh inquest, where the family hope that a reasonable analysis of the evidence will return a conclusion of unlawful killing. This would, at long last, bring justice for Yousef and his family, who have fought tirelessly for 4 years.

In a statement, Peter Weatherby KC and Counsel Matthew Stanbury said:

“The family have acted with incredible dignity throughout the legal processes since Yousef’s death. They are very pleased with the High Court’s decision, and although they recognise that no legal process can bring Yousef back, they hope that some semblance of justice can now be obtained.”

Makki’s sister Jade Akoum reported to Manchester Evening News:

“We are very grateful to the judges for today recognising that the coroner’s conclusion was unlawful, and for the compassion and understanding that they showed us during the judicial review hearing. We were so pleased to have achieved an inquest, but the coroner marched us to the top of the hill only to march us down again. We now look forward to a new inquest before a different coroner which we hope and pray will establish clearly the facts about how Yousef died.”

Yousef’s father, Ghaleb Makki has said: 

“I’d like to give a big thank you to the legal team at Watson Woodhouse, Matthew Stanbury and Peter Weatherby KC. We wouldn’t be at this stage without your hard work and determination. I would also like to say thank you to the public for their support – the fight goes on and Yousef needs support more now than ever.

If I could describe the judgment in one word, I would say Hallelujah! 

This judgment feels like we are beginning to see the light at the end of the tunnel. The journey to justice has just begun. I still have faith that justice and the truth will prevail, and we will fight on.”

Update: The second inquest has now concluded.

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In the Media:

Yousef Makki inquest verdict QUASHED in victory for stabbed boy’s family – Greater Manchester News

Yousef Makki: Stabbed boy’s family win fight for a new inquest – BBC News