A teenage witness has shown a video of a friend’s murder at a Halifax mall

A friend of Ahmad Al Marrah testified for a second day Thursday at the trial of one of four teenagers accused of murdering a 16-year-old girl.

There are only 15 witnesses and his identity is protected by a publication ban. He testified through an Arabic translator.

The Crown and defense showed him a series of video footage that was obtained from CCTV cameras in and around the parkade at the Halifax shopping centre. where the murder took place.

He was able to identify himself, Al Marrach and others on video footage of the two groups moving in the moments leading up to the fight.

The video also shows the stabbing itself, although because the cameras are automated, they didn’t zoom in to provide very close-up images of what was happening.

A witness said Al Marrah sent text messages to friends before the fight on April 22, 2024, warning them of what was about to happen and asking them to come.

The group, including Al Marrach and a witness, took a Halifax Transit bus to the Mumford Road bus station, which is directly across the street from the park.

The group gathered at a nearby Tim Hortons to wait for the appointed time.

The witness said his group had no intention of interfering and were only there to make sure the fight was fair. He said they never intended to touch anyone from the opposing group, and their plan was that if the situation turned violent, they would simply leave.

On his first day of testimonythe witness said none of his group were armed, so they stayed behind when members of the other group pulled out knives.

A police car and tape block the pedestrian entrance to the garage. — Halifax Regional Police responded to a report of an injured person in the parking lot of the Halifax Mall just after 5:00 p.m. on April 22, 2024. Ahmad Al Marrah was taken to hospital where he died. (Dave Laughlin/CBC)

When questioned about the defendant in that trial, the witness could not recall seeing him with a knife, although all four teenagers charged with murder were armed that day.

The witness also testified that he was so focused on what was happening to Al Marrach that he did not pay attention or could not remember what was happening to others in the park during the fight.

He said that what he saw shocked him and made him forget.