One teenager has been shot dead in a drive-by shooting, two young men have been convicted of the murder.
The gunman was aged 19 and his co-conspirator just 15 when they fatally shot Abdul Xasan in a drive-by killing in Coventry earlier this year.
Mr Xasan who himself was just 19-years-old was gunned down as he walked along Harnall Lane into Adelaide Street in Hillfields just after 2.30pm on 13 March.
A post-mortem examination revealed he suffered two gunshot wounds to his back which caused catastrophic internal injuries. He died in the street.
The shooter and his child getaway driver made off in a VW Golf Type R, the vehicle was stolen in Rugby the previous day, it was arranged for others to set it on fire in an attempt to destroy forensic evidence – but they weren’t on the run for long.
West Midlands Police worked quickly to establish them as potential suspects and both were arrested in the early hours of the next morning after officers raided their home address in Coventry.
Both were electronically tagged at the time due to their suspected involvement in other offences – and we seized tagging information that showed they were in the street at the time of the murder.
Shotgun cartridges found in the burned-out car were also matched by ballistics experts to spent cartridges recovered from the murder scene.
Despite strong evidence against them, the teenagers denied murder, however, a four week trial at Birmingham Crown Court concluded they were guilty.
The jury found the gunman, now aged 20 and from Longford, unanimously guilty and reached a majority verdict on the boy, now aged 16, who is from the Stoke area of Coventry.
They will be sentenced on 22 December; both will receive life custodial sentences.
For legal reasons, UNN is unable to name the killers at this stage.
The offenders were linked to the C2 gang in Coventry while the victim – who’d been arrested just days before the murder for possessing an imitation gun – was connected to a rival group known as RB7.
Detective Chief Inspector Scott Griffiths from the West Midlands Homicide Unit led the investigation, he said: “There had been ongoing tensions between the two groups, including firearms discharges, in the lead up to the murder.
“What happened was outrageous: a shotgun fired several times in a public street in the middle of the afternoon. It happened not far from a nursery. Other people not connected to either gang could easily have been injured.
“It’s a really tragic case and a stark reminder of the consequences of getting drawn into gangs. One young life has been lost and the lives of two others, including a young child, have been utterly ruined.
“We can help people who want to turn their backs on gang culture. Along with our partners including charities and support groups, we can help young people make better choices.
“But for those who insist of affiliating themselves to violent gangs there is a very strong possibility they are going to be seriously injured, killed or spend much of their life locked up in jail.”
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Editor-in-Chief | Carl D. Pearson has been involved in British politics and media from an early age, with the key knowledge of what it takes to run a news organisation for the 21st century. Mr Pearson, as Editor-in-chief, is responsible for supervising the daily tasks of publishing media and content to UNN’s website and various platforms.
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