Dealer admits beating vulnerable man to death

A drug dealer described as a "violent bully" has admitted beating a vulnerable former chef to death at a flat in north London.

The body of 55-year-old Dimitrios Tsavdaris was found in a foetal position inside a "cuckoo" flat in Hackney, after weeks of sustained violent attacks.

Bamidele Fawehinmi, 33, from Haringey, pleaded guilty to manslaughter and causing grievous bodily harm partway through his retrial at the Old Bailey.

Judge Mark Lucraft KC discharged the jury from returning a verdict on a third charge of servitude. Fawehinmi was remanded in custody and will be sentenced on 8 May.

The court heard Tsavdaris had been taken to the Hackney flat from Fawehinmi's home in Wickford, Essex, where he allegedly slept on a mattress in a garage beside American pit bull cross‑breed dogs.

Tsavdaris was described as a frail and "vulnerable person" who may have been dead or dying for several days before his body was found on 29 January 2024.

He had suffered multiple fractures to his ribs, face and breastbone, as well as both old and new bleeding on the brain and a range of internal injuries.

Det Supt Kelly Allen, who led the Met's investigation, said: "Fawehinmi is a violent bully, who preyed on vulnerable people to exploit them for his own gain.

"Dimitrios was a frail man who did not pose a threat to Fawehinmi. His initial claim in police interview that he acted in self-defence is utterly preposterous, and the words of a coward."

Earlier, prosecutor Caroline Carberry KC said Fawehinmi, a drug dealer, had taken over the Hackney property as a base for dealing.

The practice, known as cuckooing, involves criminals exploiting vulnerable people by occupying their homes for illegal activity.

Tsavdaris had been attacked both at the Hackney flat and at the defendant's home some 30 miles away in Essex, the court was told.

Forensic evidence linked Tsavdaris's blood to both the Wickford address and the Kia car used to transport him to Hackney.

Fawehinmi was acquitted of murder at his first trial but ordered to stand trial on the other charges against him.

He had previous convictions for criminal damage and common assault dating back to 2015, and admitted selling crack cocaine.

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