Two men have been jailed for life for the brutal murder of Ricardo Fuller in Redbridge as work continues to bring two other men to justice.
Emanuel Tamwesegire, 31 (29.12.91) of Wyemead Crescent, Chingford, E4 and Edmund Tucker, 32 (25.09.91) of Vincent Road, Dagenham were sentenced to life imprisonment with a minimum term of 25 years following a hearing at the Old Bailey on Thursday, 9 November.
The two men were part of a gang of five who were involved in the killing of 24-year-old Ricardo Fuller in Ilford.
Following the sentencing, Ricardo’s family said:
Ricardo’s mother said: “Through your selfish actions, this has caused, not only myself and my family, but also my friends and a whole community severe emotional and endless heartache – we have all felt from the loss of my son.
“Did you ever stop to think that this is somebody’s son? Did you ever stop to think this is someone’s brother, nephew, cousin, grandson and friend? Ricardo was such a kind warm hearted soul. I wish to thank the Jury, barrister, police team and the Judge for bringing justice for Ricardo.
“The 7th March 2020 is a date we will never forget.”
A third man, Jarmaine Ahenkorah, 30 (29.03.93) of Cumberland Road, Plaistow, E13 was convicted of manslaughter at the same trial and will be sentenced on 22 November at the same court.
All five of the gang left the country before officers could arrest them and investigators worked closely with the National Crime Agency (NCA) and Interpol to locate them.
Two other men, Ahmed Sesay and Abubaker Tarawally, who were 27 and 22 at the time of the killing, fled abroad and are currently wanted in connection with Mr Fuller’s murder.
Detective Chief Inspector Kelly Allen, from the Met’s Specialist Crime Command, said: “The sentence handed down to Tamwesegire and Tucker reflects the seriousness of this offence. This was a horrendous crime with Ricardo being ruthlessly pursued prior to being fatally stabbed.
“Two suspects for Mr Fuller’s murder remain at large. Both have fled abroad but my team are working tirelessly, with support from Interpol and the NCA, to find these men and bring them back to the UK.
“In such cases, we really need information from the public. We know that these men will still be in contact with family and friends in the UK. There are people in the very community where Ricardo was killed who will know where those responsible are hiding.
“They cannot hide forever and I would urge anyone with information, however insignificant they think it may be, to get in touch with us. Anyone with any information about the location of the two outstanding suspects is asked to call the incident room on 020 8345 1570, please quote Operation Sandside.”
Alternatively, information can be given to , anonymously, on 0800 555 111 or online at crimestoppers-uk.org.
The court heard how there was a longstanding animosity between Mr Fuller and at least one of the group.
On Saturday, 7 March, Sesay, the three defendants and Abubaker Tarawally, made their way in two cars to Discoteca No Problem, 333 Ilford High Road, Ilford.
Mr Fuller was inside the club attending a friend’s birthday party.
The five men went into the club and confronted Mr Fuller on the dance floor. The staff asked the five men to leave and they walked out, they had only been in the club five minutes.
The group stayed near the club and a short while later Mr Fuller left the club and was confronted by the group in the middle of the road.
A chase then began with Mr Fuller being pursued up and down the road as he tried to evade his attackers.
CCTV recorded his pursuers striking out and lunging at Mr Fuller, during the course of the pursuit Mr Fuller was stabbed three times. Two stab wounds were to his back, but the third wound was to his neck and it severed the artery in his neck.
The gang fled the scene and Mr Fuller was able to make his way back to the club where he collapsed on the dance floor. Despite the efforts of paramedics and hospital staff, he died later that morning.
An immediate investigation began led by homicide detectives from the Met’s Specialist Crime Command.
Officers spoke to witnesses, and reviewed hours of CCTV in order to identify those who had carried out the killing.
The cars the gang had used were forensically examined and Mr Fuller’s blood found on a door recess and Tarwally’s DNA found on items in the same car.
However, when they identified the five suspects, inquiries found they had already left the country.
In April 2020, the Crown Prosecution Service authorised murder charges against the five men in their absence.
Three of the suspects eventually returned to the United Kingdom.
