Murder of Ben Kinsella
Encyclopedia
Ben Michael Kinsella was a 16-year-old English
student at Holloway School. Kinsella was murdered by a gang of black men in Islington
, London
after an argument in which he was described as "blameless". The significant media attention around his murder (the 17th stabbing death of a teenager in London during 2008) led to a series of anti-knife crime demonstration
s, a raised profile for the government's anti-knife crime maxim "Operation Blunt 2" and a review and change of UK knife crime sentencing laws.
, who played Kelly Taylor
in the BBC
soap opera
EastEnders
from 2001 to 2004, Kinsella had been involved in acting and he had a bit part as Tyrone Dooley in a 2004 episode of The Bill
.
Kinsella was a very popular and academically gifted student. Friends spoke of his caring and comical nature adding he was "full of energy" and that he was "the life and soul of his class".
Kinsella was threatened by a knife whilst working part-time at Zebedee's Cafe in Islington
when preventing the theft of a mountain bike. Kinsella later wrote a letter to the UK's Prime Minister
Gordon Brown
as part of his English GCSE coursework, urging him to stamp out knife crime. It suggested parenting classes, curfew
s and youth club
s as possible solutions. The letter was later forwarded to Brown by his family.
Kinsella had also written a creative writing piece where he imagined his own death from stabbing, the full text of which has been reproduced in the media.
In August 2008, it was reported he passed all his GCSEs receiving two grade A*, three As, four Bs and one C.
As an aspiring graphic designer
, Kinsella had also produced a design of the letter "K" that became a symbol against knife violence.
examinations with friends in Shillibeers Brasserie Bar, North Road, London. During this time, an altercation broke out between his friend Alfie and a man named Osman Ozdemir over the simple phrase "What are you looking at?" Having been separated by a door supervisor, a friend of Ozdemir's, Jade Braithwaite was heard saying phrases including "Tell your boy if he wants trouble, I've got my tool on me and it will open you up", "I'll stab people up", "If you want it, I'll give it to you" and "Don't you know who I am?". Braithwaite was also said to be frequently motioning to the inside of his jeans as if he had a weapon. The altercation between Alfie and Ozdemir went outside the bar, where Ozdemir and another of Braithwaite's friends were glassed
. Braithwaite and his friends subsequently fled the scene.
Shortly before 02:00 on June 29 Kinsella and his friends decided to return home. When they noticed they were being followed his friends began to run. Kinsella however did not, it is thought because he knew he had nothing to do with the earlier disturbance. He then crossed over the road in order to distance himself.
He was then jointly cornered between two white vans by Braithwaite, Michael Alleyne and Juress Kika. As the three closed in on him he was heard pleading, "What are you coming over to me for? I haven't done anything". Moments later, Kinsella was kicked and punched to the ground, receiving 11 stab wounds to the chest and back in a period witnesses testified to be only a 5-second duration. Two wounds entered his lungs (causing his lung to collapse) and another inflicted with such force that it went straight through his third rib, splitting it, before entering the top of his heart. His pulmonary artery
had also been punctured and some of his wounds were nearly seven inches deep. His hands also suffered stab wounds, indicating that he tried to fend off the knives. CCTV footage showed Kinsella stagger from the scene where he was supported by his friend Louis, the son of Birds of a Feather
actress Linda Robson
. Despite surgeons' best efforts, Kinsella was pronounced dead at 07:24 as a result of blood loss from the numerous stab wounds. It was reported Kinsella had lost thirty pints of blood, the average teenage body holding only seven.
, they marched from Islington Town Hall to the site of Kinsella's murder at the junction of North Road and York Way, passing by Shillibeers nightclub in silence. The crowd were heard chanting "What are we here for? Ben. Why are we here? No knives."
Kinsella's funeral was attended by around 1000 mourners including public figures such as Michelle Ryan
, Gillian Taylforth
, James Alexandrou
and Jeremy Corbyn
, MP
. The father of Damilola Taylor was also present.
The Kinsella family made numerous media appearances campaigning against knives and set up a fund to raise awareness of the effects of gun and knife crime.
The three men accused and later convicted of Kinsella's murder were:
, was aged 19 at the time of Kinsella's murder and 20 at the time of sentencing. With a height of 6'6", Braithwaite had hoped to become a professional goalkeeper
and played in an Islington youth league until its closure when he was 14. He had also worked as a coach at a local leisure centre. Prior to the murder, Braithwaite had a reprimand for possession of cannabis
and was convicted of attempted theft of a laptop computer from a fellow teenager. He was given a one-year detention and training order in 2006 but during 2007 his sentence was cut on appeal
to community service
.
), of Islington, London, was aged 18 both at the time of Kinsella's murder and at the time of sentencing. He had been released three months earlier from a young offender institution
after serving just half his sentence and was under the supervision of the council's youth offending team at the time of the murder. Alleyne had a criminal record including shoplifting
, robbery
, motor vehicle theft
and drug dealing
of crack cocaine
and heroin. Alleyne's electronic tag
was removed just weeks prior to the attack. He had also previously been in custody for robbery of a mobile phone. He was also known to "terrorise" council estate
tenants with his 2 Staffordshire Bull Terrier
s. Alleyne is also alleged to have pulled a gun on a young member of his own gang.
n minicab driver named Joao and was mostly raised by his mother. He was first cautioned aged 11, the same year he stabbed 14-year-old Robert Parker in the back with a 3-inch blade before calmly walking away, although he was not prosecuted because of his age. Kika was on the run from police for a stabbing and robbery incident 9 days prior to the murder over a drugs argument. He had also received convictions for robbery, affray and obstructing a constable
.
Each was unemployed at the time of the murder and all have been alleged to have been involved in the same drug-dealing group named the Market Massiv'. A journalist investigating the group claimed Alleyne to be the gang's leader, with Braithwaite as an enforcer and Kika as a foot soldier
. It is also claimed that the gang set up dogfights
to gamble on. Conflicts also existed between them and another gang who pistol-whipped
Alleyne.
where they were apprehended after running along rooftops. Alleyne's father had originally indicated that Alleyne and Kika returned to the flat around 02.30, but changed his statement six months later, claiming it was confused due to an injury he received during the raid itself. When giving testimony, Alleyne's father admitted that his son had said to him, "If it hadn't been for you, I wouldn't be in this mess".
72 spots of Kinsella's blood were later identified on a pair of Alleyne's jeans that he handed to his sister to dispose of, and traces were also found on Kika's belt.
Several of Kinsella's friends also testified about Braithwaite's activities in Shillibeers nightclub.
Alleyne's cousin Kellie later claimed that Alleyne and Kika had confessed the murder to her.
After handing himself in to the police, Braithwaite first claimed that he did not know either Alleyne or Kika. Later he claimed he had seen Alleyne stab Kinsella but he had not been involved himself. He stated that Alleyne had a reputation for using weapons and was concerned about the impact that telling the police would have upon his family. No forensic evidence was found in relation to Braithwaite, however police found some of his clothes had been washed in bleach.
Despite belief at one stage that knives used in the murder were found, the police never found the murder weapon(s) involved.
Both Alleyne and Kika answered "no comment" to all questions asked during their police interviews.
Aware that his cousin Kellie was going to give evidence against him, Alleyne wrote a threatening letter to her from jail, reading:
This letter subsequently became a major part of the Crown's case against Alleyne.
The tape showed Braithwaite offering Alleyne and Kika money for saying that he was not present at the murder scene. Kika was also heard discussing getting a "teardrop" (alleged to be referring to a teardrop tattoo to mark him as having been involved in a murder) and discussing "fixing" the person who records the CCTV for the area. Kika is also heard saying "See when it happened yeah it was kinda like a quick ting[sic] like boom, went down the road, come back up, boom, finished. You get what I'm saying?" - apparently in relation to the murder itself.
Additionally, Alleyne was heard on the tape discussing disposing of evidence.
Braithwaite is heard on the tape trying to bribe the others to say he was not there and also revealed on the tape that the Clerkenwell crime syndicate
, better known as the Adams family, had made threats against Kinsella's murderers, indicating that each was a "marked man."
On October 13, 2008 all three defendants pled not guilty to the charge of murder. A 7-week trial began at the Old Bailey
on April 27, 2009. The judge was the Common Serjeant of London
, Brian Barker
, QC
. The Crown Prosecution Service
was represented by Nicholas Hilliard, QC and Duncan Penny. Braithwaite was represented by Orlando Pownall, QC and Nerida Hartford-Bell. Alleyne was represented by Sallie Bennett-Jenkins, QC and Z. Ahmed. Kika was represented by Diana Ellis, QC and James Nichol.
During the course of the trial, both Braithwaite and Alleyne took the witness stand. Braithwaite claimed that Kinsella had thrown a punch at him, although there was no supporting evidence of this. After this, Braithwaite claimed he saw Alleyne carry out the murder. Braithwaite also claimed that a friend of Alleyne had punched him in the cells of the Old Bailey whilst he was handcuffed to a wall. Alleyne claimed that he had been contacted by Braithwaite and asked to back him following the dispute at Shillibeers, although no phone records identified a call between Braithwaite and Alleyne prior to the attack. Kika exercised his right to silence
and did not take the witness stand.
Having retired to consider their verdict on June 9, the jury
returned on June 11 with a unaminous verdict of guilty in relation to all three defendants. The victim's mother, Deborah Kinsella, then read out a victim impact statement
in court following the verdict, the full text to which can be found online.
On June 12, the judge gave each defendant a life sentence
with a minimum tariff
of 19 years. Sentencing them the judge described the attack on Kinsella as "brutal, cowardly and totally unjustified" adding that their actions that night "defies belief". He continued saying that there was "no possible excuse" for such an "arrogant and unfeeling attack on someone who had done nothing". He also condemned them for picking on "an obviously younger and smaller lone victim" and for their total lack of remorse.
The accused were jeered at by members of the public gallery with cries of "Bye bye" and "Enjoy your porridge
." Kika and Alleyne gestured back at the gallery as if they were firing guns. Angry scenes also took place between the victim's and defendants' families after one of the accused's mothers spat on Kinsella's cousin Sam whilst shouting "I love you, baby." Another person connected to one of the accused attempted to kick one of Kinsella's friends in the head.
agreed to carry out a review of knife crime sentencing laws shortly afterwards. The Kinsella family said that to them, "life should mean life," although it is not possible in English law to give a whole life tariff
to murderers under the age of 21. A review of the sentencing by the Attorney General for England and Wales
, Baroness Scotland
determined that the sentencing would not be referred to the Court of Appeal
as "unduly lenient".
A 50 minute documentary entitled My Brother Ben: Brooke Kinsella's Story was aired on BBC One
on June 16, 2009. It followed Brooke Kinsella's investigation of the underlying causes of knife crime during the period from her brother's death to the end of the court case. Brooke also travelled to New York
to see prisons using short, sharp shock
treatments to rehabilitate young offenders. The documentary also points out the success of Operation Blunt 2, which carried out over 290,000 stop and searches, leading to over 10,000 arrests and the confiscation of over 5,500 knives within the timeline of the documentary.
A book by Brooke Kinsella, entitled Why Ben?: A Sister's Story of Heartbreak and Love for the Brother She Lost was released on September 3, 2009.
On 5 October 2009 the media released extracts of a letter written by Alleyne in prison to his fellow gang members. Within the letter, he boasted of being "the king of swagger", referring to his gang as the "stab gang". He also bragged about "taming" the prison where he is serving his life sentence.
On 25 January the Sun newspaper reported that Jade Braithwaite had been using a Facebook account he set up from jail, reportedly from a smuggled BlackBerry
, to taunt Ben's family.
On 13 November 2009 Juress Kika lost his appeal to challenge his 19 year sentence. He argued his sentence was "manifestly excessive," however The Lord Judge, Mr Justice Penry-Davey
and Mr Justice Henriques rejected this statement saying that the term could not "remotely" be described as excessive. They concluded that "there is no true mitigation. There was no guilty plea, no remorse, and no insight into the devastation that had been caused". They accepted that the applicant was young when the murder was committed but added that Kika " knew exactly what he was doing. They all did". "They were all equally involved. They all intended to kill the young victim. They had hunted him down and mercilessly done him to death to revenge an insignificant slight for which he bore no responsibility whatsoever."
They stated that Ben did not say or do anything which could be even be misinterpreted as provocation, adding that "All that this boy wanted to do was to get away from trouble. But - we cannot mince words - he was cut down before he could reach safety.".
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
student at Holloway School. Kinsella was murdered by a gang of black men in Islington
Islington
Islington is a neighbourhood in Greater London, England and forms the central district of the London Borough of Islington. It is a district of Inner London, spanning from Islington High Street to Highbury Fields, encompassing the area around the busy Upper Street...
, London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
after an argument in which he was described as "blameless". The significant media attention around his murder (the 17th stabbing death of a teenager in London during 2008) led to a series of anti-knife crime demonstration
Demonstration
Demonstration may refer to:* Demonstration , a political rally or protest* Demonstration , a conclusive mathematical proof* Demonstration , a method of teaching by example rather than simple explanation...
s, a raised profile for the government's anti-knife crime maxim "Operation Blunt 2" and a review and change of UK knife crime sentencing laws.
The victim
Kinsella was born the son of cab driver George Kinsella and his wife Deborah, a school secretary. He has a half-brother, 3 half-sisters and a younger, full sister. Like his older sister Brooke KinsellaBrooke Kinsella
Brooke Kinsella, MBE is an English actress and author. A graduate of the Anna Scher Theatre School, Kinsella has been acting since childhood. She has had various roles on television and in film...
, who played Kelly Taylor
Kelly Taylor (EastEnders)
Kelly Taylor is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders, played by Brooke Kinsella. The character was introduced by executive producer John Yorke, in 2001...
in the BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
soap opera
Soap opera
A soap opera, sometimes called "soap" for short, is an ongoing, episodic work of dramatic fiction presented in serial format on radio or as television programming. The name soap opera stems from the original dramatic serials broadcast on radio that had soap manufacturers, such as Procter & Gamble,...
EastEnders
EastEnders
EastEnders is a British television soap opera, first broadcast in the United Kingdom on BBC One on 19 February 1985 and continuing to today. EastEnders storylines examine the domestic and professional lives of the people who live and work in the fictional London Borough of Walford in the East End...
from 2001 to 2004, Kinsella had been involved in acting and he had a bit part as Tyrone Dooley in a 2004 episode of The Bill
The Bill
The Bill is a police procedural television series that ran from October 1984 to August 2010. It focused on the lives and work of one shift of police officers, rather than on any particular aspect of police work...
.
Kinsella was a very popular and academically gifted student. Friends spoke of his caring and comical nature adding he was "full of energy" and that he was "the life and soul of his class".
Kinsella was threatened by a knife whilst working part-time at Zebedee's Cafe in Islington
Islington
Islington is a neighbourhood in Greater London, England and forms the central district of the London Borough of Islington. It is a district of Inner London, spanning from Islington High Street to Highbury Fields, encompassing the area around the busy Upper Street...
when preventing the theft of a mountain bike. Kinsella later wrote a letter to the UK's Prime Minister
Prime Minister of the United Kingdom
The Prime Minister of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the Head of Her Majesty's Government in the United Kingdom. The Prime Minister and Cabinet are collectively accountable for their policies and actions to the Sovereign, to Parliament, to their political party and...
Gordon Brown
Gordon Brown
James Gordon Brown is a British Labour Party politician who was the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Labour Party from 2007 until 2010. He previously served as Chancellor of the Exchequer in the Labour Government from 1997 to 2007...
as part of his English GCSE coursework, urging him to stamp out knife crime. It suggested parenting classes, curfew
Curfew
A curfew is an order specifying a time after which certain regulations apply. Examples:# An order by a government for certain persons to return home daily before a certain time...
s and youth club
Youth club
A youth club or youth social club is a place where young people can meet and enjoy activities such as football, soccer, basketball, table tennis, or video games, and other religious, sports activities are frequently sponsored by a community center....
s as possible solutions. The letter was later forwarded to Brown by his family.
Kinsella had also written a creative writing piece where he imagined his own death from stabbing, the full text of which has been reproduced in the media.
In August 2008, it was reported he passed all his GCSEs receiving two grade A*, three As, four Bs and one C.
As an aspiring graphic designer
Graphic designer
A graphic designer is a professional within the graphic design and graphic arts industry who assembles together images, typography or motion graphics to create a piece of design. A graphic designer creates the graphics primarily for published, printed or electronic media, such as brochures and...
, Kinsella had also produced a design of the letter "K" that became a symbol against knife violence.
The attack
On June 28, 2008, Kinsella was out celebrating the end of his GCSEGeneral Certificate of Secondary Education
The General Certificate of Secondary Education is an academic qualification awarded in a specified subject, generally taken in a number of subjects by students aged 14–16 in secondary education in England, Wales and Northern Ireland and is equivalent to a Level 2 and Level 1 in Key Skills...
examinations with friends in Shillibeers Brasserie Bar, North Road, London. During this time, an altercation broke out between his friend Alfie and a man named Osman Ozdemir over the simple phrase "What are you looking at?" Having been separated by a door supervisor, a friend of Ozdemir's, Jade Braithwaite was heard saying phrases including "Tell your boy if he wants trouble, I've got my tool on me and it will open you up", "I'll stab people up", "If you want it, I'll give it to you" and "Don't you know who I am?". Braithwaite was also said to be frequently motioning to the inside of his jeans as if he had a weapon. The altercation between Alfie and Ozdemir went outside the bar, where Ozdemir and another of Braithwaite's friends were glassed
Glassing
Glassing is a physical attack using a glass as a weapon. Glassing can occur at bars or pubs where alcohol is served, and a drinking glass or bottle is available as a weapon. The most common method of glassing involves the attacker smashing an intact glass in the face of the victim...
. Braithwaite and his friends subsequently fled the scene.
Shortly before 02:00 on June 29 Kinsella and his friends decided to return home. When they noticed they were being followed his friends began to run. Kinsella however did not, it is thought because he knew he had nothing to do with the earlier disturbance. He then crossed over the road in order to distance himself.
He was then jointly cornered between two white vans by Braithwaite, Michael Alleyne and Juress Kika. As the three closed in on him he was heard pleading, "What are you coming over to me for? I haven't done anything". Moments later, Kinsella was kicked and punched to the ground, receiving 11 stab wounds to the chest and back in a period witnesses testified to be only a 5-second duration. Two wounds entered his lungs (causing his lung to collapse) and another inflicted with such force that it went straight through his third rib, splitting it, before entering the top of his heart. His pulmonary artery
Pulmonary artery
The pulmonary arteries carry deoxygenated blood from the heart to the lungs. They are the only arteries that carry deoxygenated blood....
had also been punctured and some of his wounds were nearly seven inches deep. His hands also suffered stab wounds, indicating that he tried to fend off the knives. CCTV footage showed Kinsella stagger from the scene where he was supported by his friend Louis, the son of Birds of a Feather
Birds of a Feather
Birds of a Feather was a British sitcom that was broadcast on BBC1 from 1989 until 1998. Starring Pauline Quirke, Linda Robson and Lesley Joseph, it was created by Laurence Marks and Maurice Gran, who also wrote some of the episodes along with many other writers.The first episode sees sisters...
actress Linda Robson
Linda Robson
Linda Patricia Mary Robson is an English actress. She played Tracey in the BBC comedy, Birds of a Feather from 1989 to 1998.-Personal life and education:...
. Despite surgeons' best efforts, Kinsella was pronounced dead at 07:24 as a result of blood loss from the numerous stab wounds. It was reported Kinsella had lost thirty pints of blood, the average teenage body holding only seven.
Demonstrations
After Kinsella's murder, an estimated 400 teenagers joined a demonstration to highlight concerns over the UK's growing knife crime culture. In the march organised by 16-year-old Brooke Dunford via the website FacebookFacebook
Facebook is a social networking service and website launched in February 2004, operated and privately owned by Facebook, Inc. , Facebook has more than 800 million active users. Users must register before using the site, after which they may create a personal profile, add other users as...
, they marched from Islington Town Hall to the site of Kinsella's murder at the junction of North Road and York Way, passing by Shillibeers nightclub in silence. The crowd were heard chanting "What are we here for? Ben. Why are we here? No knives."
Kinsella's funeral was attended by around 1000 mourners including public figures such as Michelle Ryan
Michelle Ryan
Michelle Claire Ryan is an English actress.She is best known for portraying the role of Zoe Slater on BBC soap opera EastEnders. In 2007, she starred in the short lived American television series Bionic Woman...
, Gillian Taylforth
Gillian Taylforth
Gillian Taylforth is an English actress. She is best known for her roles as Kathy Mitchell on the BBC soap opera, EastEnders and as Jackie Pascoe-Webb on ITV's Footballers Wives , but more recently as Sgt. Nikki Wright in ITV's The Bill...
, James Alexandrou
James Alexandrou
James Alekos Alexandrou is an English actor of Greek Cypriot descent, best known for playing Martin Fowler in the BBC One soap opera EastEnders.-Early life:...
and Jeremy Corbyn
Jeremy Corbyn
Jeremy Bernard Corbyn is a British Labour Party politician who has been the Member of Parliament for Islington North since 1983.-Early and personal life:...
, MP
Member of Parliament
A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...
. The father of Damilola Taylor was also present.
The Kinsella family made numerous media appearances campaigning against knives and set up a fund to raise awareness of the effects of gun and knife crime.
The three murderers
Jade Darrell Braithwaite
Braithwaite (also known as "J-Man"), of Bow, LondonBow, London
Bow is an area of London, England, United Kingdom in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. It is a built-up, mostly residential district located east of Charing Cross, and is a part of the East End.-Bridges at Bowe:...
, was aged 19 at the time of Kinsella's murder and 20 at the time of sentencing. With a height of 6'6", Braithwaite had hoped to become a professional goalkeeper
Goalkeeper
In many team sports which involve scoring goals, a goalkeeper is a designated player charged with directly preventing the opposing team from scoring by intercepting shots at goal...
and played in an Islington youth league until its closure when he was 14. He had also worked as a coach at a local leisure centre. Prior to the murder, Braithwaite had a reprimand for possession of cannabis
Cannabis
Cannabis is a genus of flowering plants that includes three putative species, Cannabis sativa, Cannabis indica, and Cannabis ruderalis. These three taxa are indigenous to Central Asia, and South Asia. Cannabis has long been used for fibre , for seed and seed oils, for medicinal purposes, and as a...
and was convicted of attempted theft of a laptop computer from a fellow teenager. He was given a one-year detention and training order in 2006 but during 2007 his sentence was cut on appeal
Appeal
An appeal is a petition for review of a case that has been decided by a court of law. The petition is made to a higher court for the purpose of overturning the lower court's decision....
to community service
Community service
Community service is donated service or activity that is performed by someone or a group of people for the benefit of the public or its institutions....
.
Michael Leroy Alleyne
Alleyne (also known as "Tigger" due to his dreadlocksDreadlocks
Dreadlocks, also called locks, a ras, dreads, "rasta" or Jata , are matted coils of hair. Dreadlocks are usually intentionally formed; because of the variety of different hair textures, various methods are used to encourage the formation of locks such as backcombing...
), of Islington, London, was aged 18 both at the time of Kinsella's murder and at the time of sentencing. He had been released three months earlier from a young offender institution
Her Majesty's Young Offender Institution
Her Majesty's Young Offenders Institution is a type of British prison intended for offenders aged between 18 and 20, although some prisons cater for younger offenders from ages 15 to 17, who are classed as juvenile offenders...
after serving just half his sentence and was under the supervision of the council's youth offending team at the time of the murder. Alleyne had a criminal record including shoplifting
Shoplifting
Shoplifting is theft of goods from a retail establishment. It is one of the most common property crimes dealt with by police and courts....
, robbery
Robbery
Robbery is the crime of taking or attempting to take something of value by force or threat of force or by putting the victim in fear. At common law, robbery is defined as taking the property of another, with the intent to permanently deprive the person of that property, by means of force or fear....
, motor vehicle theft
Motor vehicle theft
Motor vehicle theft is the criminal act of stealing or attempting to steal a motor vehicle...
and drug dealing
Illegal drug trade
The illegal drug trade is a global black market, dedicated to cultivation, manufacture, distribution and sale of those substances which are subject to drug prohibition laws. Most jurisdictions prohibit trade, except under license, of many types of drugs by drug prohibition laws.A UN report said the...
of crack cocaine
Crack cocaine
Crack cocaine is the freebase form of cocaine that can be smoked. It may also be termed rock, hard, iron, cavvy, base, or just crack; it is the most addictive form of cocaine. Crack rocks offer a short but intense high to smokers...
and heroin. Alleyne's electronic tag
Electronic tagging
Electronic tagging is a form of non-surreptitious surveillance consisting of an electronic device attached to a person or vehicle, especially certain criminals, allowing their whereabouts to be monitored. In general, devices locate themselves using GPS and report their position back to a control...
was removed just weeks prior to the attack. He had also previously been in custody for robbery of a mobile phone. He was also known to "terrorise" council estate
Council house
A council house, otherwise known as a local authority house, is a form of public or social housing. The term is used primarily in the United Kingdom and the Republic of Ireland. Council houses were built and operated by local councils to supply uncrowded, well-built homes on secure tenancies at...
tenants with his 2 Staffordshire Bull Terrier
Staffordshire Bull Terrier
The Staffordshire Bull Terrier is a medium-sized, short-coated, old-time breed of dog. It is an English dog, where it is the 5th most popular breed, and related to the bull terrier...
s. Alleyne is also alleged to have pulled a gun on a young member of his own gang.
Juress Kika
Kika (also known as "Dubzy"), of Islington, London, was aged 18 at the time of Kinsella's murder and 19 at the time of sentencing by which time he had a child born. He was born the son of an AngolaAngola
Angola, officially the Republic of Angola , is a country in south-central Africa bordered by Namibia on the south, the Democratic Republic of the Congo on the north, and Zambia on the east; its west coast is on the Atlantic Ocean with Luanda as its capital city...
n minicab driver named Joao and was mostly raised by his mother. He was first cautioned aged 11, the same year he stabbed 14-year-old Robert Parker in the back with a 3-inch blade before calmly walking away, although he was not prosecuted because of his age. Kika was on the run from police for a stabbing and robbery incident 9 days prior to the murder over a drugs argument. He had also received convictions for robbery, affray and obstructing a constable
Obstruction of justice
The crime of obstruction of justice, in United States jurisdictions, refers to the crime of interfering with the work of police, investigators, regulatory agencies, prosecutors, or other officials...
.
Each was unemployed at the time of the murder and all have been alleged to have been involved in the same drug-dealing group named the Market Massiv'. A journalist investigating the group claimed Alleyne to be the gang's leader, with Braithwaite as an enforcer and Kika as a foot soldier
Foot Soldier
The term foot soldier may refer to:* A generic term for members of the infantry* Characters in the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles television series belonging to the Foot Clan* The Foot Soldiers, a comic book originally published by Dark Horse Comics...
. It is also claimed that the gang set up dogfights
Dog fighting
Dog fighting is a form of blood sport in which game dogs are made to fight, sometimes to the death. It is illegal in most developed countries. Dog fighting is used for entertainment and may also generate revenue from stud fees, admission fees and gambling....
to gamble on. Conflicts also existed between them and another gang who pistol-whipped
Pistol-whipping
Pistol-whipping is the act of using a handgun as a blunt weapon, wielding it as if it were a club or blackjack. "Pistol-whipping" and "to pistol-whip" were reported as "new words" of American speech in 1955, with cited usages from 1940s...
Alleyne.
Evidence
The prosecution amassed a large amount of evidence that was used during the 7-week trial.Witnesses, forensics and apprehension
All three defendants were witnessed running together at Kinsella prior to the murder and later standing together shortly afterwards. Alleyne and Kika were then seen going to Alleyne's father's flat. This flat was raided by police shortly afterwards, but Alleyne and Kika had already walked through a police cordon and fled to Alleyne's cousin's flat in Chadwell HeathChadwell Heath
Chadwell Heath is a place in the London Borough of Redbridge and the London Borough of Barking and Dagenham, both in Greater London. It is north-east of Charing Cross.-Toponymy:...
where they were apprehended after running along rooftops. Alleyne's father had originally indicated that Alleyne and Kika returned to the flat around 02.30, but changed his statement six months later, claiming it was confused due to an injury he received during the raid itself. When giving testimony, Alleyne's father admitted that his son had said to him, "If it hadn't been for you, I wouldn't be in this mess".
72 spots of Kinsella's blood were later identified on a pair of Alleyne's jeans that he handed to his sister to dispose of, and traces were also found on Kika's belt.
Several of Kinsella's friends also testified about Braithwaite's activities in Shillibeers nightclub.
Alleyne's cousin Kellie later claimed that Alleyne and Kika had confessed the murder to her.
After handing himself in to the police, Braithwaite first claimed that he did not know either Alleyne or Kika. Later he claimed he had seen Alleyne stab Kinsella but he had not been involved himself. He stated that Alleyne had a reputation for using weapons and was concerned about the impact that telling the police would have upon his family. No forensic evidence was found in relation to Braithwaite, however police found some of his clothes had been washed in bleach.
Despite belief at one stage that knives used in the murder were found, the police never found the murder weapon(s) involved.
Both Alleyne and Kika answered "no comment" to all questions asked during their police interviews.
Letter from Alleyne to Kellie
Aware that his cousin Kellie was going to give evidence against him, Alleyne wrote a threatening letter to her from jail, reading:
This letter subsequently became a major part of the Crown's case against Alleyne.
Covert tape
Police obtained a license to record Braithwaite, Alleyne and Kika in the back of a police van, where they were able to establish that the three knew each other.The tape showed Braithwaite offering Alleyne and Kika money for saying that he was not present at the murder scene. Kika was also heard discussing getting a "teardrop" (alleged to be referring to a teardrop tattoo to mark him as having been involved in a murder) and discussing "fixing" the person who records the CCTV for the area. Kika is also heard saying "See when it happened yeah it was kinda like a quick ting
Additionally, Alleyne was heard on the tape discussing disposing of evidence.
Braithwaite is heard on the tape trying to bribe the others to say he was not there and also revealed on the tape that the Clerkenwell crime syndicate
Clerkenwell crime syndicate
The Clerkenwell crime syndicate, most often known as the Adams Family or the A-team by the British press, is alleged to be one of the most powerful criminal organisations in the United Kingdom if not in fact the strongest. By the nature of their position reliable information about them that has not...
, better known as the Adams family, had made threats against Kinsella's murderers, indicating that each was a "marked man."
Trial
Old Bailey
The Central Criminal Court in England and Wales, commonly known as the Old Bailey from the street in which it stands, is a court building in central London, one of a number of buildings housing the Crown Court...
on April 27, 2009. The judge was the Common Serjeant of London
Common Serjeant of London
The Common Serjeant of London is an ancient British legal office, first recorded in 1317, and is the second most senior permanent judge of the Central Criminal Court after the Recorder of London, acting as deputy to that office, and sitting as a judge in the trial of criminal offences.The Common...
, Brian Barker
Brian Barker
His Hon. Judge Brian John Barker, QC is a British judge and the current Common Serjeant of London, the second most senior judge at the Old Bailey....
, QC
Queen's Counsel
Queen's Counsel , known as King's Counsel during the reign of a male sovereign, are lawyers appointed by letters patent to be one of Her [or His] Majesty's Counsel learned in the law...
. The Crown Prosecution Service
Crown Prosecution Service
The Crown Prosecution Service, or CPS, is a non-ministerial department of the Government of the United Kingdom responsible for public prosecutions of people charged with criminal offences in England and Wales. Its role is similar to that of the longer-established Crown Office in Scotland, and the...
was represented by Nicholas Hilliard, QC and Duncan Penny. Braithwaite was represented by Orlando Pownall, QC and Nerida Hartford-Bell. Alleyne was represented by Sallie Bennett-Jenkins, QC and Z. Ahmed. Kika was represented by Diana Ellis, QC and James Nichol.
During the course of the trial, both Braithwaite and Alleyne took the witness stand. Braithwaite claimed that Kinsella had thrown a punch at him, although there was no supporting evidence of this. After this, Braithwaite claimed he saw Alleyne carry out the murder. Braithwaite also claimed that a friend of Alleyne had punched him in the cells of the Old Bailey whilst he was handcuffed to a wall. Alleyne claimed that he had been contacted by Braithwaite and asked to back him following the dispute at Shillibeers, although no phone records identified a call between Braithwaite and Alleyne prior to the attack. Kika exercised his right to silence
Right to silence in England and Wales
The right to silence in England and Wales is the protection given to a person during criminal proceedings from adverse consequences of remaining silent. It is sometimes referred to as the privilege against self-incrimination...
and did not take the witness stand.
Having retired to consider their verdict on June 9, the jury
Jury
A jury is a sworn body of people convened to render an impartial verdict officially submitted to them by a court, or to set a penalty or judgment. Modern juries tend to be found in courts to ascertain the guilt, or lack thereof, in a crime. In Anglophone jurisdictions, the verdict may be guilty,...
returned on June 11 with a unaminous verdict of guilty in relation to all three defendants. The victim's mother, Deborah Kinsella, then read out a victim impact statement
Victim impact statement
A victim impact statement is a written or oral statement made as part of the judicial legal process, which allows a victim of crime the opportunity to speak during the sentencing of their attacker or at subsequent parole hearings. In some instances videotaped statements are...
in court following the verdict, the full text to which can be found online.
On June 12, the judge gave each defendant a life sentence
Life imprisonment
Life imprisonment is a sentence of imprisonment for a serious crime under which the convicted person is to remain in jail for the rest of his or her life...
with a minimum tariff
Tariff (criminal law)
In England and Wales, life imprisonment is a sentence which lasts until the death of the prisoner, although in most cases the prisoner will be eligible for parole after a fixed period set by the judge. This period is known as the "minimum term"...
of 19 years. Sentencing them the judge described the attack on Kinsella as "brutal, cowardly and totally unjustified" adding that their actions that night "defies belief". He continued saying that there was "no possible excuse" for such an "arrogant and unfeeling attack on someone who had done nothing". He also condemned them for picking on "an obviously younger and smaller lone victim" and for their total lack of remorse.
The accused were jeered at by members of the public gallery with cries of "Bye bye" and "Enjoy your porridge
Porridge
Porridge is a dish made by boiling oats or other cereal meals in water, milk, or both. It is usually served hot in a bowl or dish...
." Kika and Alleyne gestured back at the gallery as if they were firing guns. Angry scenes also took place between the victim's and defendants' families after one of the accused's mothers spat on Kinsella's cousin Sam whilst shouting "I love you, baby." Another person connected to one of the accused attempted to kick one of Kinsella's friends in the head.
Aftermath
After the trial, the Kinsella family called for stronger sentences for knife crimes. Kinsella's father was quoted as saying "If you murder someone with a gun, the starting tariff is 30 years. But if you do it with a knife, it's 15 years." The UK's Secretary of State for Justice, Jack StrawJack Straw
Jack Straw , British politician.Jack Straw may also refer to:* Jack Straw , English* "Jack Straw" , 1971 song by the Grateful Dead* Jack Straw by W...
agreed to carry out a review of knife crime sentencing laws shortly afterwards. The Kinsella family said that to them, "life should mean life," although it is not possible in English law to give a whole life tariff
Whole life tariff
This is a list of prisoners who have received a whole life tariff through some mechanism in jurisdictions of the United Kingdom.Eight of these prisoners have since died in prison, while three of them have had their sentences reduced on appeal, meaning that there are currently at least 48 prisoners...
to murderers under the age of 21. A review of the sentencing by the Attorney General for England and Wales
Attorney General for England and Wales
Her Majesty's Attorney General for England and Wales, usually known simply as the Attorney General, is one of the Law Officers of the Crown. Along with the subordinate Solicitor General for England and Wales, the Attorney General serves as the chief legal adviser of the Crown and its government in...
, Baroness Scotland
Patricia Scotland, Baroness Scotland of Asthal
Patricia Janet, Baroness Scotland of Asthal, PC, QC is a British barrister, and served in many ministerial positions within the UK Government, most notably as the Attorney General for England and Wales and Advocate General for Northern Ireland.-Early life and career:Baroness Scotland was born in...
determined that the sentencing would not be referred to the Court of Appeal
Appellate court
An appellate court, commonly called an appeals court or court of appeals or appeal court , is any court of law that is empowered to hear an appeal of a trial court or other lower tribunal...
as "unduly lenient".
A 50 minute documentary entitled My Brother Ben: Brooke Kinsella's Story was aired on BBC One
BBC One
BBC One is the flagship television channel of the British Broadcasting Corporation in the United Kingdom. It was launched on 2 November 1936 as the BBC Television Service, and was the world's first regular television service with a high level of image resolution...
on June 16, 2009. It followed Brooke Kinsella's investigation of the underlying causes of knife crime during the period from her brother's death to the end of the court case. Brooke also travelled to New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
to see prisons using short, sharp shock
Short, sharp shock
The phrase "short, sharp shock" is a phrase meaning "punishment that is quick and severe." It was most famously used in Gilbert and Sullivan's 1885 comic opera The Mikado, where it appears near the end of the Act I song, "I Am So Proud"....
treatments to rehabilitate young offenders. The documentary also points out the success of Operation Blunt 2, which carried out over 290,000 stop and searches, leading to over 10,000 arrests and the confiscation of over 5,500 knives within the timeline of the documentary.
A book by Brooke Kinsella, entitled Why Ben?: A Sister's Story of Heartbreak and Love for the Brother She Lost was released on September 3, 2009.
On 5 October 2009 the media released extracts of a letter written by Alleyne in prison to his fellow gang members. Within the letter, he boasted of being "the king of swagger", referring to his gang as the "stab gang". He also bragged about "taming" the prison where he is serving his life sentence.
On 25 January the Sun newspaper reported that Jade Braithwaite had been using a Facebook account he set up from jail, reportedly from a smuggled BlackBerry
BlackBerry
BlackBerry is a line of mobile email and smartphone devices developed and designed by Canadian company Research In Motion since 1999.BlackBerry devices are smartphones, designed to function as personal digital assistants, portable media players, internet browsers, gaming devices, and much more...
, to taunt Ben's family.
Appeal
On June 28, 2009, it was reported that all three killers were set to appeal against their sentences stating the tariff was "too harsh". They claim that the publicity surrounding the case was a factor in their sentences.On 13 November 2009 Juress Kika lost his appeal to challenge his 19 year sentence. He argued his sentence was "manifestly excessive," however The Lord Judge, Mr Justice Penry-Davey
David Penry-Davey
Sir David Herbert Penry-Davey is a British High Court judge.He was educated at Hastings Grammar School and at King's College London . He was called to the Bar at Inner Temple in 1965. He was made a Crown Court recorder in 1986, a QC in 1988, and has been a judge of the High Court of Justice since...
and Mr Justice Henriques rejected this statement saying that the term could not "remotely" be described as excessive. They concluded that "there is no true mitigation. There was no guilty plea, no remorse, and no insight into the devastation that had been caused". They accepted that the applicant was young when the murder was committed but added that Kika " knew exactly what he was doing. They all did". "They were all equally involved. They all intended to kill the young victim. They had hunted him down and mercilessly done him to death to revenge an insignificant slight for which he bore no responsibility whatsoever."
They stated that Ben did not say or do anything which could be even be misinterpreted as provocation, adding that "All that this boy wanted to do was to get away from trouble. But - we cannot mince words - he was cut down before he could reach safety.".
Change in sentencing law
After agreeing on request by the Kinsella family and due to the public outrage surrounding the case, Justice Secretary Jack Straw announced the minimum tariff for murders committed with a knife will rise from 15 to 25 years. This new development is being branded "Ben's Law" and Ben's father George hopes the new law will act as a deterrent to anyone who is thinking of carrying a knife.Further reading
- Brooke Kinsella, Why Ben?: A Sister's Story of Heartbreak and Love for the Brother She Lost, (Pocket Books, 2009) ISBN 978-1847398475