Duo guilty of Just Eat disguise murder of teenager

A teenage gunman has been found guilty of murdering a boy in broad daylight while disguised as a Just Eat delivery rider in south London.

Neo Duodu-Watson, 18, shot 16-year-old Lathaniel Burrell in the chest and back outside a block of flats in Paradise Road in Stockwell on the afternoon of 4 March last year.

Omar Prempeh, 33, from Forest Hill, was also found guilty of murder after prosecutors said he assisted the killing by driving the gunman to and from the scene in a car fitted with a concealed compartment to hide the weapon, the Old Bailey heard.

Jurors were discharged after failing to reach verdicts on charges against three more men, who face a retrial in November.

Duodu-Watson was riding a stolen moped and had on a distinctive jacket worn by Just Eat delivery riders to avoid arousing suspicion, jurors were told.

He fired two shots from a pistol which had been converted to fire live ammunition.

One bullet in Lathaniel's chest caused "catastrophic" internal bleeding, and he collapsed and died after attempting to run away.

Prosecution barrister Alan Gardner KC had told jurors: "The gunman would have fired more shots but his firearm malfunctioned and disintegrated, leaving parts behind at the scene which were later found by the police.

"However, the two shots he did fire were enough to achieve what the gunman intended - Lathaniel died at the scene, despite the best efforts of members of the public and emergency medical staff."

Gardner told the court the murder was a "planned, organised and premeditated shooting" by Duodu-Watson and assisted by Prempeh.

He was the driver of a white Nissan Juke car which was used to drive the gunman to and from the scene.

Jurors were told Prempeh's car had a specially constructed hiding place which was an ideal place to conceal a gun.

The defendants used a "trap house" (a premises where illegal drugs are sold) as a base before and after the shooting, the court heard.

The Just Eat jacket worn by the gunman was linked to that address and following a search, police found live ammunition in one of the bedrooms.

On a possible motive for the killing, Gardner suggested its origins lay in the trade in illegal drugs and had "many of the hallmarks of serious organised crime".

Following an Old Bailey trial, Duodu-Watson, from Peckham, and Prempeh, 33, from Forest Hill, were found guilty of murder on Friday.

Both men were remanded into custody to be sentenced at a later date

Det Ch Insp Sarah Lee said: "Our thoughts remain firmly with Lathaniel's family as they continue to navigate the unimaginable grief of losing a loved one in such a senseless and violent way.

"I am immensely proud of my team, who worked tirelessly and with unwavering dedication to secure today's outcome."

She said her team undertook "meticulous work" in analysing CCTV, phone records and social media to "construct a minute-by-minute account of the suspects' actions".

"This case has a deeply troubling element of child exploitation at its core," she added.

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