Teenager jailed for Luton machete murder after fatal knife attack

Emmanuel Avogo has been jailed for 20 years for the murder of Adam Khan after the 26-year-old was lured to Humberstone Road in Luton and attacked with a machete. Bedfordshire Police described the killing as violent and vicious and said there is never any justification for carrying a knife.

Police said the attack followed an altercation in Humberstone Road shortly after 6pm on a Sunday, when officers were called to reports involving two men and a woman. Two teenagers were arrested on suspicion of murder as detectives began a homicide investigation in the town. Khan, who lived in Luton, was later identified as the victim.

A jury later found Avogo guilty of murder, and the court also convicted a teenage girl of manslaughter in the same case. Bedfordshire Police said Avogo was 16 at the time of the killing and was sentenced in July 2026 to 20 years for murder, with a further nine months for possession of a knife. The force said the case involved a deliberate decision to carry a knife and underlined the consequences of that choice.

The killing landed in a town where police, the council, schools and community and faith groups have repeatedly discussed knife crime and the need for practical solutions. Luton MP Sarah Owen welcomed police funding aimed at tackling gang and knife crime, reflecting the pressure on local agencies to respond to youth violence in and around the town.

Luton has already seen another serious stabbing case in which a 16-year-old boy died and another teenager suffered life-changing injuries, adding to concerns about the pattern of knife crime affecting young people in the area. Avogo’s sentence closes one case, but the facts of the attack leave the same hard question for police and local leaders: how to stop knives reaching teenagers before another family is left with a fatal result.