By Daniel Oluwatobiloba Popoola
Fawaz Abdulkareem, popularly known as “Larry Hoover,” has been sentenced to life imprisonment in the United Kingdom for the murder of Daniel Manuel following a dispute over a debt, reports thegazellenews.com
Thursday, 21 May, 2026, a jury at Croydon Crown Court unanimously convicted 36-year-old Fawaz Abdulkareem of Bondway, Southwark, of murder and possession of a bladed article in a public place, thegazellenews.com reports further.
He was subsequently sentenced on Friday, 5 June, 2026 to life imprisonment and ordered to serve a minimum of 17 years behind bars.
The court heard that Manuel, 32, was fatally stabbed at Abdulkareem’s flat on Bondway in the early hours of 5 July, 2025, after an argument over money allegedly owed by the convict.
According to investigators, both men had spent the evening at a nightclub before returning with a group of friends to Abdulkareem’s apartment. However, the gathering turned tragic when a disagreement over the debt escalated into violence.
Prosecutors told the court that Abdulkareem stabbed Manuel three times with a kitchen knife during the altercation.
Police were alerted at about 5:38 a.m. and arrived at the scene within six minutes. Officers immediately administered emergency first aid while paramedics and doctors battled to save the victim.
Despite their efforts, Manuel was pronounced dead at the scene.
Metropolitan Police detectives swiftly identified Abdulkareem as the prime suspect and arrested him at the scene before charging him the following day.
Investigators also rejected his claim of self-defence after evidence gathered during the investigation contradicted his account.
The court further heard that after the attack, Abdulkareem left the flat with the knife tucked into the waistband of his trousers. He reportedly removed his T-shirt and used it to conceal the weapon while informing staff in the building’s communal lobby about Manuel’s injuries.
However, upon realising that emergency responders were on their way, he attempted to dispose of the murder weapon by throwing it from a window on the 14th floor of the building. His attempt to cover his tracks failed.
One of the responding officers observed blood belonging to the victim on Abdulkareem’s clothing, leading to his immediate arrest. Detectives later recovered the knife and secured additional evidence linking him to the killing.
Reacting to the verdict, Manuel’s wife, Zulal, described the devastating impact of the tragedy on her life.
“Daniel was not just my husband, he was my partner, my home, my emotional safety and the person I built my entire life around,” she said.
“Losing him in such a violent and sudden way has completely shattered my world.”
She added that the loss had left deep emotional, physical and financial scars.
“This loss has affected every part of my life, emotionally, physically, financially and I am still trying to survive the aftermath of it,” she said.
The conviction brings closure to a case that shocked the Southwark community and underscored the tragic consequences of a dispute that ended in the loss of a life.
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