Two men who fled abroad after fatally stabbing a man in Redbridge in 2020 have been convicted of murder.
The court heard the two men were part of a gang of five who were involved in the killing of 24-year-old Ricardo Fuller.
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.
On November 1, the following were convicted of murder after a trial at the Old Bailey.
- Emanuel Tamwesegire, 31 (29.12.1991) of Wyemead Crescent, Chingford, E4.
- Edmund Tucker, 31 (25.09.1991) of Vincent Road, Dagenham
Jarmaine Ahenkorah, 30 (29.03.1993) of Cumberland Road, Plaistow, E13 was convicted of manslaughter
Tamwesegire and Tucker will be sentenced on 9 November and Ahenkorah on 23 November.
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: “ Three people have been brought to justice for the killing of Ricardo Fuller. It was a horrendous crime with Ricardo being ruthlessly pursued prior to being fatally stabbed. Officers worked incredibly hard to identify those responsible and gather the evidence against them. All that work has culminated in these convictions and I sincerely hope seeing justice done will be of some solace to Mr Fuller’s friends and family.
“However, we are very aware that 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 Crimestoppers, anonymously, on 0800 555 111 or online at crimestoppers-uk.org.
Ricardo’s family said: “We will always remember Ricardo, he will be in our hearts forever. After three long years we are grateful that justice has finally begun to be served. We still await the arrest of two more perpetrators in this case and then we may be able to take steps to move forward with our lives.”
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. Jarmaine Ahenkorah flew back from Ghana on 19 April 2021, Emanuel Tamwesegire flew back into the country on 12 July 2021 from Amsterdam and Edmund Tucker returned to the United Kingdom on 29 July 2021.
Ahmed Sesay, 31 (10.06.92) and Abubaker Tarawally, 25 (14.01.98) are still currently being sought by police.
Anyone with any information about the whereabouts of these two men is asked to call the incident room on 020 8345 1570.
To give information anonymously contact Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111 or online at crimestoppers-uk.org
