A teenage boy has appeared in court charged with murdering a lawyer who was stabbed to death in a busy city centre.
Peter Duncan died after being attacked close to a branch of Greggs bakery in the Old Eldon Square shopping centre in Newcastle at around 6.20pm last Wednesday.
Police have said they believe the weapon involved was a screwdriver.
On Monday, a 17-year-old boy appeared at North Tyneside Magistrates’ Court accused of murdering the 52-year-old.
The teenager also faces a charge of possessing an offensive weapon and theft of “a quantity of screwdrivers” from a branch of Poundland.
Wearing a grey tracksuit, he spoke only to confirm his name and address, and will appear at Newcastle Crown Court on Wednesday.
His mother sat in the court as the five-minute hearing took place.
The boy will then appear at Newcastle Crown Court for a plea hearing on September 16, the court heard.
Following Duncan’s death, police swiftly arrested eight youths aged between 14 and 17, with three remaining under investigation in addition to the teenager who appeared in court on Monday.
The lawyer was described by his family as a “kind and caring man who was always first to help others”.
They added: “He was a devoted father, husband, son, brother, uncle and friend and loved by all who knew him. His death will leave such a huge hole in our lives and he’ll be deeply missed by us all.
“Words can’t quite describe what life will be like without him.”
Duncan was an in-house lawyer for a multi-national maritime firm.
According to his LinkedIn profile, he was an electrical engineer before training as a solicitor at Northumbria University in 2003.
He worked in Newcastle for Royal IHC Limited, which has a city centre office close to where he was attacked.