A teenager who stabbed a lawyer to death as the older man walked home through a shopping centre has been jailed for life, with a minimum term of 15 years.

Ewan Ireland was 17 when he attacked 52-year-old Peter Duncan at the entrance to Newcastle’s Eldon Square shopping centre in August.

The two had merely brushed past each other when the agitated youth pulled out a screwdriver he had just shoplifted, and stabbed the devoted father once in the heart.

Duncan, who was an in-house lawyer for an international maritime firm, managed to walk on a few yards before he collapsed near a Greggs.

Ireland admitted murder at a previous hearing, but journalists were only legally able to publish his identity once he turned 18 in October.

Northumbria Police described the horrifying attack as unprovoked and a “chance encounter”.

The day after the murder, Duncan’s family said: “Peter was a kind and caring man who was always first to help others.

“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.

“He had so much of his life left to live and he’ll be in our hearts and thoughts every day.”

The case was adjourned after Ireland admitted murder to allow psychiatric and psychological reports to be prepared.

After he pleaded guilty, it emerged that Ireland was a serial youth offender who continued to commit violent crimes despite being on bail.