Four members of an “evil” East London gang who stabbed a “wholly innocent” NHS worker to death in a random and unprovoked attack have been jailed.
David Gomoh, 24, was stabbed 10 times with “Rambo-type machetes” before stumbling back to his home and dying in front of his horrified family in Newham on April 26 last year.
The marketing graduate, who had nothing to do with gang violence, had been working in supply and procurement for the NHS during the first wave of the coronavirus pandemic when he was attacked by members of the Northside Newham gang.
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David Ture, 19, Vagnei Colubali, 22, Muhammad Jalloh, 19, appeared at the Old Bailey on Friday (September 17) to be sentenced having been convicted following a six-week trial.
Alex Melaku was also convicted of murder at the same trial. Reporting restrictions had previously been in place to protect his identity as a juvenile.
Alex Melaku turned 18 the day before being jailed for life
(Image: Metropolitan Police)
However, he can now be named after turning 18 the day before he was jailed for life.
All four men were found to have appeared in pictures and videos making gang signs and wearing gang colours, while also glorifying violence.
The Old Bailey heard how David had been chosen at random by members of the gang in order to send a message to their rivals.
The gang had met at a hotel in Stratford earlier that evening before travelling by minicab to a quiet residential street in Plaistow – each carrying a bag believed to contain a change of clothing.
All four then got into a Dodge Calibre, armed with “large knives and machetes”, which is believed to have been stolen and fitted with false number plates.
David Gomoh was stabbed in Newham on Sunday, April 26
(Image: Metropolitan Police)
They targeted another man in the same area shortly before the fatal stabbing, but he was able to escape.
In the seconds before the attack, at around 10.22pm, an unsuspecting David had been on the phone to his girlfriend and she heard someone ask “where are you from?”, followed by the sounds of a struggle.
Vagnei is believed to have driven to Freemasons Road, Canning Town, before Jalloh, Ture and left the vehicle and inflicted the fatal attack.
Emergency services rushed to the scene as neighbours tried desperately to give David life-saving first aid in front of his haunted family, but he died at the scene.
A post-mortem examination found David had suffered “catastrophic injuries”.
The Central Criminal Court also referred to as the Old Bailey, central London
(Image: PA Archive/PA Images)
His carotid and brachial arteries had been severed and his liver had been cut through. Some of the wounds were found to be as deep as 12.5cm and sliced into the bone.
David died just 19 days after his 24th birthday and 20 days after the death of his father, the court heard.
Police found the stolen car abandoned in Lincoln Road, less than a mile from the fatal stabbing, after the vehicle had lost its wheel as they fled the scene.
A pair of sunglasses were found on the back seat of the vehicle, with DNA evidence linking them to Jalloh. Another pair of sunglasses were recovered from the scene of the attack; DNA from Melaku was found upon the left arm.
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During a search of Ture’s address, officers found a series of graphic drawings which appeared to depict the stabbing.
The childlike doodles showed cartoon depictions of the four men at East London’s Church Street brandishing weapons and smoking cigarettes.
Passing sentence, the Recorder of London Judge Mark Lucraft QC said the gang had “little or no regard for human life”.
He added: “You are all members of the Northside Newham gang and have feuds with gangs on the south of the borough. You kill simply for the sake of it and show little or no regard for human life.
“The three of you laid into him. He was stabbed as many as 10 times, with wounds to his head and body as deep as 19.5cm in depth. He was still able to stumble the short distance back to his home, but he died following emergency treatment in hospital.”
Jailed for total of 101 years
Jalloh, of Watt Street, had eight previous convictions for 12 offences including robbery and possession of a weapon.
He was jailed for life with a minimum term of 27 years.
Colubali, of Suffolk Road, Enfield, had five previous convictions for 12 offences.
He was jailed for life with a minimum term of 27 years.
Ture, of Boomsbury Street, Camden, had five previous convictions for 12 offences and was sentenced to life with a minimum prison term of 26 years.
Melaku, of Telford, Shropshire, was jailed for life with a minimum term of 21 years.
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