The shooting occurred on 14 December 2024 outside the River of Life Pentecostal church in Willesden, north London. Michelle Sadio, a mother of two and legal administrator, was among about 100 mourners, including children as young as five, at the wake for 80-year-old Dianne Boatong. At about 9pm, guests were on the pavement when a black Kia pulled up and fired shots into the crowd. Sadio died at the scene. Kenneth Amoah, a Transport for London contractor, was hit in the back and paralysed below the waist. Kadeem Francis, who is self-employed, was shot in the foot. At least four shots were fired from the Kia, though it remains unknown who pulled the trigger.
The prosecution alleged the intended target was a rapper called Trapstar Toxic, whose real name is Adetokunbo Ajibola. It was claimed Allen-Thomas and Sutherland put others up to the shooting, though they were not present when it was carried out. Salem was accused of helping to dispose of the vehicle and of reporting between the car’s occupants and Allen-Thomas and Sutherland on the night of the shooting. The prosecution further claimed Sommersall was in the car with two other people – Ibrah Sayed and Hassan Mohammed – both of whom were said to have fled the country, and whose exact whereabouts remain unknown to the police.
All four defendants denied all of the charges. Giving evidence, Sommersall denied being in the Kia and claimed to have been on a council estate in Wembley at the time of the shooting. The other defendants denied being involved or knowing anything about it.
Evidence presented during the trial revealed the car used in the attack had been stolen and was being driven with false number plates. After the shooting, it was doused in petrol supplied by Salem and set alight. The weapon had been used twice before in the previous months and was said to be a “gang gun”. In one of the earlier incidents, the occupant of a car opened fire outside a pizzeria, discharging 11 rounds and hitting one person in the ankle. There was no suggestion the defendants in this case were involved in that incident.
Perry Allen-Thomas, Amir Salem, Shaquille Sutherland and Tahjin Sommersall were all accused of murder and attempted murder over their alleged involvement in the shootings, with Sommersall also charged with possessing a firearm with intent to endanger life. On Tuesday, Allen-Thomas and Salem were found guilty of murder and two counts of attempted murder after an Old Bailey trial. Sutherland, a rapper known as Lil Shak, and Sommersall were cleared. Mrs Justice McGowan remanded the two convicted defendants into custody to be sentenced at a later date. The specific motives behind the intended targeting of Trapstar Toxic and the sentences Allen-Thomas and Salem will receive have not been disclosed.