Asylum seeker who murdered customer inside Lloyds bank in Derby jailed

An asylum seeker who “calmly” walked into a bank and stabbed a man inside to death without provocation or motive has been jailed for life.

Haybe Cabdiraxmaan Nur stabbed Gurvinder Johal, 37, through the heart in an attack caught on CCTV at a Lloyds Bank branch in St Peter’s Street, Derby, just after 14:30 BST on 6 May.

Mr Johal’s family said Nur – who Derby Crown Court heard arrived on small boat in the UK after spending a few years in Europe – was a “coward and demon” who had robbed his three young children of their innocence.

On Wednesday, Nur was jailed for at least 25 years.

The court heard Nur, who arrived in the UK in October 2024, had previously spent time in Italy, France, Germany, Luxembourg and the Netherlands.

Sentencing Nur, Judge Shaun Smith said: “You murdered [Mr Johal] in broad daylight in front of members of the public.

“What you did, armed with a knife, was randomly select Mr Johal and plunge it into his chest – a man you never knew. It was a brutal and callous act.

“This was a real-life horror film for everyone connected to Mr Johal and those who witnessed this.”

His asylum application was rejected by the Home Office in January 2025 and Nur was in the process of appealing the decision when the offence of murder took place, Derby Crown Court heard.

Louis Mably KC, for the prosecution, read out a victim impact written by Mr Johal’s sister on behalf of the family.