Teenager who stabbed 17-year-old girl on dance floor during summer party

A 17-year-old boy who murdered a teenager on a crowded dance floor at a summer party has been sentenced to life in prison with a minimum sentence of at least 16 years behind bars.

Charlie Cosser, 17, was stabbed three times in the chest in a tent on a farm during a private party attended by more than 100 people in Warnham, West Sussex, on July 23, 2023.

The name of his killer, Yura Varybrus, was revealed for the first time after the PA news agency and the Sunday Times applied to lift a ban on revealing his identity.

Sentencing Varybrus at Brighton Crown Court on Wednesday, Judge Christine Henson KC said: “Instead of what should have been an end of academic year celebration, Charlie was stabbed… on a crowded dance floor.

Tara Cosser, the victim’s mother

“The impact of losing Charlie on his family and friends is immeasurable.”

The judge added that while she accepted it was a “spontaneous” incident and it was not certain whether Varybrus had brought the knife to the party, “the relevant factor was that you knew the knife was available to you in the evening and you were in having him on the floor.”

“You armed yourself with a knife on the dance floor.”

The courtroom was filled to capacity with the families of those accused of committing Varybrus’ crime. Charlie’s family gave emotional statements to the court about the impact his son’s death has had on them.

Charlie’s mother, Tara Cosser, told the court how the 17-year-old started an apprenticeship as a groundskeeper at a private school and “loved his new adventure”.

He was also “very excited” to go on his first holiday with friends to Zante, which he had been saving for after the party.

Mrs Cosser said: “We have a life sentence and Charlie is not facing a life sentence.

“No sentence will be long enough for the murderer of my child. “It won’t bring Charlie back to life.”

Of Charlie, she added: “He was calm and collected… he got along with everyone.

“(The effects of) losing him will last forever. Just numbness and sadness.

“When I laugh or smile, I feel guilty.

“I send him a WhatsApp message every morning.”

Varybrus stabbed Charlie after a fight broke out on the dance floor between two strangers and two other boys, when Varybrus and his friends were asked to leave the party following complaints about his behavior towards a girl.

Although the knife was never found, witnesses at the party testified that they saw Varybrus “soaked” in blood and heard him say after the attack, “I stabbed someone.”

A guest at the party also captured some of the violence on video when she began filming her friends dancing to Britney Spears’ song “Toxic.”

The trial heard how Charlie was lying on the grass and was initially believed to be under the influence of alcohol before blood appeared on his T-shirt and a friend realized he had been stabbed.

When the police arrived at 12.30am Charlie was still conscious and able to give his name, address and date of birth.

On the way to the hospital, he suffered a cardiac arrest with internal bleeding caused by a severed aorta, the main artery leading from the heart.

The teenager from Milford, Surrey, also known as “Cheeks”, died two days later on July 25.

Varybrus was found guilty of Charlie’s murder and possessing a bladed article after a trial at Brighton Crown Court.

The young West Sussex resident did not testify in the trial but denied both allegations.

During sentencing and defense, Sarah Jones KC said Varybrus would turn back time if he could, adding: “He will always be known for something he doesn’t even remember that was the work of a few drunk seconds.”

She said she understood that Charlie Cosser “did not deserve what happened to him” and that “his family did not deserve to lose their son.”

The jury heard that Varybrus burned the bloody clothes he had worn to the party in a bonfire in the garden and that he suffered an injury to his left hand, which the prosecution alleges occurred when he stabbed Charlie.

The court heard footage of the teenager at Toby Carvery’s restaurant on July 23 before he was arrested by police.

Charlie’s family previously paid tribute to their “most caring, cheeky and loving son and brother” who had a “ridiculously silly sense of humour”.

After his death, they founded the charity Charlie’s Promise, which aims to fight knife crime in Surrey and the UK.

Restrictions prohibiting the disclosure of Varybrus’s address and where he is being held remain in place.

Lifting the name restriction on him, Judge Henson said: “The level of youth offending in this case is likely to attract a great deal of public attention at a private party attended by a number of young people.

“Charlie Cosser’s death shocked the community and the family set up a charity to tackle knife crime. Disclosure of information may help the local community come to terms with this event.”

She added that the potential deterrent effect on others of identifying Varybrus in this case is of crucial public interest and public protection in homicide cases.

Varybrus will serve the minimum term minus the 328 days he has already spent in custody.