Teen apologizes for murder of Ahmad Al Marrach in Halifax parking garage

Nova ScotiaThe teenager convicted of second-degree murder in the death of Ahmad Al Marrach in April 2024 apologized in youth court Monday at his sentencing hearing.Lawyers expected to make final arguments Nov. 12Blair Rhodes · CBC News · Posted: Oct 27, 2025 12:40 PM EDT | Last Updated: 2 hours agoListen to this articleEstimated 2 minutesAhmad Al Marrach, 16, died in hospital after being stabbed in a parking garage of the Halifax Shopping Centre on April 22, 2024. (Al Marrach family)The teenager convicted of second-degree murder in the death of Ahmad Al Marrach in April 2024 apologized in youth court Monday at his sentencing hearing.“I made the biggest mistake of my life,” said the teen, reading from a prepared text.The boy was 14 when he fatally stabbed Al Marrach in the chest during a fight in which he and three other teens swarmed the 16-year-old in a parking garage at the Halifax Shopping Centre.All four teens, whose identities are protected by a publication ban, were initially charged with murder, but the other three were eventually convicted of the lesser offence of manslaughter. During his hearing Monday, the boy said he didn’t know Al Marrach before the brief and violent confrontation.He said he has since learned that his victim was kind, considerate and respectful and had a positive impact on those around him. Those sentiments were echoed by members of Al Marrach’s family. His mother and sister read victim impact statements into the record before the teen addressed the court. The Crown read additional statements from Al Marrach’s three brothers. The family members spoke of the hole in their lives left by his death. His mother, Basima Al Jaji, noted they had escaped violence in their native Syria, coming to Canada as refugees in 2016, only to encounter this violence here.Her statement, read to the court through a translator, echoed another victim impact statement she made earlier this year during a hearing for two others charged in the case.In January, she told the court she dies a thousand times a day without her child, cannot sleep and wishes she were dead.In his statement, the teen said he joined a fight that didn��’t concern him.“I’m not proud of what I did,” he said.Lawyers will make their final arguments in this case on Nov. 12.MORE TOP STORIESABOUT THE AUTHORBlair Rhodes has been a journalist for more than 40 years, the last 31 with CBC. His primary focus is on stories of crime and public safety. He can be reached at blair.rhodes@cbc.ca