A DRUG dealer has been jailed for 13 years after being convicted of the manslaughter of a teenager in Basingstoke.

Terence Maccabee was convicted by a jury of the manslaughter of Taylor Williams in August 2019.

Maccabee was just 18 when he was part of a failed robbery in Shooters Way that led to the death of Mr Williams.

He, Olamide Soyege and Paige Taylor had been planning to rob Mr Williams's network, which was based in Shooters Way.

The court heard this was because the leader of the drugs line they worked for could not tolerate the competition they posed.

But after Mr Williams stood up for himself, Soyege stabbed him five times.

The court heard how Maccabee did not intend for anyone to die, but "should it prove necessary, some harm should be caused", according to Judge Martin Spencer.

Being sentenced, the now 20-year-old had expressed "genuine" remorse for his actions.

He wrote a letter to Mr Williams's family, who appeared in court, which the judge read: "I have read their reports, and it made me sad to read them.

"I want to say sorry to them. I believe I have been given a second chance, but Taylor did not get a second chance.

"I am going to be in prison and I will not waste my time."

He also added that should the family ever meet him, he would apologise in person.

The court had been told how Maccabee, who grew up in Peckham, had lost his father at the age of nine years old, and turned to dealing drugs in order to bring some money into the family.

But in mitigation, Tana Adkin QC told the court that her client was "vulnerable", adding: "The court will remember the significance of Maccabee being stabbed in this incident, which made him realise what a waste of life it was, and Mr Williams' young life being taken has had a significant impact on him, that it could have so easily have been his life that was also lost on the 31st August.

"There are lost opportunities during his time at school to assist him and draw him away from such a lifestyle. They are to be regretted.

"We submit the court will want to consider whether now is a time that the court can consider there is a future for TM to turn away from the former lifestyle he was living and be rehabilitiated so he can live a valuable and profitable life."

The attempted robbery had taken place whilst Maccabee was serving a suspended sentenced. He was caught with a 15-inch machete at Exeter St David's train station in February 2019.

Additionally, he is currently serving a 16-month sentence in a youth offenders' institute after being convicted of drug dealing.

As a result, his suspended sentence was activated, and Judge Spencer decided that the 13-year prison term will begin immediately.

Reacting to the sentencing, Taylor's mum, Fay Livingstone, said: "I am really pleased that it is finally over and that my son can be at peace. I can grieve in peace."

She previously spoke to The Gazette, saying that "no mother thinks they will be burying their son".

As previously reported, 29-year-old Olamide Soyege, from Dagenham, was sentenced to life in prison, to serve a minimum term of 32 years, after being convicted of murder.

Additionally, Paige Taylor, from Basingstoke, was jailed for seven years for robbery and drug dealing charges.