Harry Potter Actor's Killer Sentenced

The killer of Harry Potter actor Rob Knox has finally been sentenced for his heinous crime.

The "habitual knife-carrier" who stabbed the Harry Potter actor Rob Knox to death was today sentenced to life imprisonment and told that he will spend at least 20 years behind bars.

Karl Bishop (pictured above), 22, was given four life sentences and will serve a minimum of 20 years after being found guilty yesterday of murdering Mr Knox. The 18-year-old was stabbed five times outside a club in their home town of Sidcup, southeast London, last May.

He was also convicted of injuring four of the actor’s friends. Dean Saunders, 23, was stabbed in the neck and suffered permanent spinal damage. Andrew Dormer, 17, was stabbed in the chest as he tried to disarm Bishop. Nicky Jones, 20, was knifed in the hand and Charlie Grimley, 17, was stabbed in the face and arm.

The young actor had completed filming on Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, in which he played the part of Marcus Belby, just days before his death and was due to reprise the role in the next instalment of the series.

Bishop, who had a conviction for a knife attack on two men and who habitually carried knives, lashed out in revenge after an earlier incident.

He had refused to return to court to hear impact statements from Mr Knox’s parents, Colin and Sally, after being convicted of the murder yesterday.

Today, however, he swaggered into court smiling at three friends in the public gallery and at one point was heard to giggle. He stood impatiently in the dock and smirked as he was sentenced by Mr Justice Bean. Mr Knox’s parents and brother sat at the side of the dock and listened with their heads down.

After dock officers were told to take him down, Bishop, who was wearing a grey jumper, bowed his head in acknowledgement and left.

Colin Knox, 55, told GMTV this morning: “His body language was disgusting. When it comes to the crunch and he’s found guilty, he disappears into a hole and he can’t face the parents, the friends of Robert and those people he attacked.

“It just shows the guy’s values. He’s got no morals, no values.”

Mr Knox’s mother, Sally, 51, said that Bishop should have been made to go into court for the impact statements.

“Personally, once he’s got his sentence and he’s gone, I will not waste my time thinking about him,” she said.

“I just think maybe somebody like him may have some kind of disturbed mind, which may not be due to the life he’s had, it just may be something in him. I don’t know.”

Mr and Mrs Knox said that they wanted to do something in their son’s memory, such as setting up a youth centre or a sponsorship scheme for actors.

Bishop was told he would also serve life with a minimum of five years for wounding Mr Saunders, who will never walk properly again after being stabbed in the neck.

The two other concurrent sentences had minimum terms of two years for wounding Mr Jones and Mr Grimley. A further concurrent two-year sentence was passed for stabbing Mr Dormer.