Chris Kaba was ‘core member’ of gang and ‘gunman in nightclub shooting’ days before he was killed by police
Chris Kaba was a core member of a notorious south London gang and accused of being the gunman in an alleged bid to murder a rival in a nightclub shooting days before he was killed.
The 24-year-old’s gang links, previous convictions and violent past can be reported for the first time after Metropolitan Police marksman Martyn Blake was cleared of murder and the judge Mr Justice Goss lifted reporting restrictions.
Brandon Malutshi was shot twice in the leg with a revolver as Kaba, 24, opened fire on the dancefloor of The Oval Space, in Hackney, east London, and on the road outside as the victim tried to escape in the early hours of 30 August 2022.
Kaba, known by his street name “Itch”, had arrived at the scene in the same Audi Q8 he was driving on the night of 5 September 2022, when he was shot in the head by Mr Blake, 40, as he tried to escape from police in Streatham, south London.
CCTV shows Kaba entering the nightclub – shown under a blue arrow.
Kaba seen with Shemiah Bell (yellow arrow) and Connell Bamgboye (green arrow)
The same vehicle was linked to a shooting in Bromley, southeast London, on 22 May 2022, in which two people were targeted with a shotgun, the Old Bailey heard in legal argument not in front of the jury in Mr Blake’s murder trial.
The Audi was also used as one of two getaway vehicles the night before Kaba was killed after three masked men fired a shotgun twice at unknown targets outside a Brixton school, jurors were told.
But they didn’t know Kaba was found with a balaclava in his pocket and gunshot residue on his sleeve when he was shot, although prosecutors suggested it may have come from one of the firearms officers.
The dark Audi Q8 driven by Kaba. Pic: IOPC
No weapons were found in the Audi, which was not registered to Kaba, although he was one of the known drivers.
A handgun was discovered on 14 September 2022 by cleaners behind the bins of a property along the route he took before he was killed, but the weapon is not thought to be linked to the incident.
Kaba was due to face a civil court hearing 10 days after his death, where police would make an application for a gang injunction, used to place restrictions on people involved in gang violence.
He had previously been the subject of an interim version of the order, but it had elapsed while he was in prison for other convictions.
The 67 gang
Mr Blake’s barrister Patrick Gibbs KC had argued “bad character” evidence relating to Kaba should be put before the jury in the murder case.
But the application was refused by the judge because it wasn’t deemed relevant to the issues in the case as the officer didn’t know Kaba was driving the car, only that it had been linked to a shooting the night before.
The judge rejected an application made on behalf of Kaba’s mother to extend reporting restrictions beyond the end of the trial.
Mr Gibbs described Kaba as the “principal gunman” of the Brixton Hill-based 67 gang, which has more than 50 known members.
A police report submitted to the court as part of an unsuccessful bid to keep the anonymity of the officer, previously known as NX121, described the group as an “identifiable street gang”.
The gang is in an “active and violent dispute with a rival faction of street gangs”, including “numerous firearms discharges, stabbings and murders” which has played out in gang-related music since 2014, it said.
Kaba had appeared in drill rap videos with other 67 members online.
Kaba was described as a ‘core member’ of a London gang
Its members are “embedded in a culture of drug supply, serious violence, firearms and knife possession” and are part of the “highest harm street gang in Lambeth”, according to the report.
Mr Gibbs said there was specific intelligence to indicate there was a risk to Blake’s life because the gang might seek to identify and murder him as revenge for the fatal shooting of Kaba.
Previous convictions
Kaba has convictions dating back to when he was aged 13 for offences including stabbing with intent to cause grievous bodily harm, a knife-enabled gang assault when the victim was stabbed and had his arm broken, and two other knife offences.
In 2015, when he was 17, Kaba was convicted of affray and possession of an offensive weapon – a belt – over an incident in which a revolver-style handgun was recovered nearby, but the weapon wasn’t linked to him and he was never charged in connection with it.
He was jailed for four years after being convicted of possessing an imitation firearm in 2017 and in August 2020 was handed a five-month prison sentence for failing to stop and possession of a knife, which was discarded from a vehicle.
Attempted murder trial
Had he not been killed, Kaba would’ve stood trial for the attempted murder of Malutshi, who was affiliated with the Wandsworth Road-based 1-7 gang, along with six other men.
His name was on the indictment at the Old Bailey trial earlier this year, where it was an agreed fact that Kaba was a “core member” of the 67 gang, but his role in the attack after Notting Hill Carnival couldn’t be reported until the end of Mr Blake’s trial.
A witness said Kaba, who was wearing a balaclava, was “moving mad” as he identified his “ops” before pulling a gun out of a bag smuggled into the club by Marcus Pottinger.
Marcus Pottinger (left) and Connel Bamgboye. Pic:PA
Shemiah Bell. Pic: PA
Malutshi was shot on the busy dance floor, then again as Kaba chased him as he fled into a side street, suffering wounds to his left and right thighs.
Kaba left the scene in the back of a Range Rover, while Shemiah Bell, known as “Bones” because of his dog bone necklace, drove the Audi away for Kaba to collect later.
Bell was jailed for 10 years and Pottinger for nine years after they were found guilty of wounding with intent to cause GBH and possession of a firearm to cause fear of violence.
Sentencing the men, Judge Simon Mayo KC said: “Having spotted Malutshi in the nightclub, I am sure that Kaba decided he would confront him and shoot him.”
Connell Bamgboye, nicknamed “C-Rose” or “Conz”, whose passport was found in the Audi on the night Kaba was shot, was sentenced to five and half years in prison after he was convicted of the firearms offence.
Bamgboye, who was also stopped in the Audi by armed police in the first half of 2022, was convicted with Kaba in 2015 over a nine-man fight, and they were both later involved in a gang altercation at an unlicensed music event in Romford, the court heard.
Kaba was stabbed in the stomach, while Bamgboye and another person were injured in a shooting when a row erupted.
‘He should never have stood trial’
Before the jury delivered its unanimous not guilty verdict after around four hours of deliberation on Monday, they passed a note to the judge asking for permission also to pass comment, which was denied.
But Mr Justice Goss refused an application from the media, supported by a lawyer for Kaba’s family, to make the note public.
Matt Cane, the general secretary of the Metropolitan Police Federation, which represents rank-and-file officers, said Mr Blake “should never have stood trial” and his fellow officers “remain astonished that a brave colleague could be charged with murder”.
“The ramifications of this case remain widespread; police officers should not have their livelihoods, and their liberty, put at risk for performing what unequivocally, in this case, was his lawful and appropriate function,” he said.
“It remains a matter of grave concern, that investigations into the most serious complex and dynamic operational scenarios, such as this, are carried out by those who seemingly have little, or no, experience of policing, no understanding of this type of fast-moving and dangerous operational trained tactic, involving split-second decision making in the most difficult and challenging circumstances.
“The flaws which arise in such investigations, are then compounded by poor decision making by the Crown Prosecution Service, and others.”
UK
Post Office scandal: At least 8 convictions may be linked to second IT system used by Post Office
At least eight convictions predating the Horizon Post Office scandal are being looked at by the body investigating potential miscarriages of justice, Sky News has learned.
The Criminal Cases Review Commission (CCRC) has confirmed it is examining multiple cases of former sub-postmasters affected by Capture software.
The computer accounting system was used in the early 1990s, prior to Horizon being introduced to Post Office branches from 1999 onwards.
Horizon was at the centre of the Post Office scandal and saw hundreds of sub-postmasters wrongly convicted of stealing from their branches.
The Kroll report, commissioned by the government earlier this year, found that Capture had bugs and glitches and there was a reasonable likelihood it had caused cash shortfalls too.
Lord Beamish, the former Labour MP Kevan Jones, has been supporting victims and is calling for the government to extend current legislation to automatically quash convictions.
The Post Office (Horizon System) Offences Act was passed in May but does not include Capture victims.
Lord Beamish told Sky News he has raised the issue with the Justice Secretary and called for a House of Lords debate.
“The government are going to have to take this seriously,” he said. “We can’t have a situation where we have a two-tier system where people get exonerated from Horizon and the Capture cases are either forgotten or have to go through a very lengthy legal process to get their names cleared.”
Chris claims his mother was wrongly jailed because of accounting problems with the Post Office software Capture
He added he had “little faith” in the CCRC’s “ability to deal with cases”, after multiple Horizon cases were referred to the body years ago.
“The problem with these cases is the lack of evidence… that has been destroyed or lost so actually proving some of these cases through that process will be very difficult.
“Therefore I think a blanket exoneration like we had with Horizon I think has got to be discussed and considered for these cases.”
The CCRC told Sky News it has five cases under review “in which the Capture IT system could be a factor”.
It also said it is “seeking further information” on eight cases referenced in the Kroll report.
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The CCRC added that the time taken for a case review to be completed was dependent on the “complexity” of each case “and how readily available information about it is”. In a statement, it admitted: “The availability of information can be a particular hurdle in older cases.”
Chris’s mother died earlier this year following a battle with Alzheimer’s and never got to clear her name
Chris Roberts’ mother, Liz Roberts, was convicted in 1999 of stealing £46,000 from the Post Office and spent 13 months behind bars.
Liz, who was in the advanced stages of Alzheimer’s disease, passed away earlier this year.
Chris said she was jailed four days before he turned 17, and he used to have “nightmares” that she was “going to die in there”.
“There was no evidence of any financial gain because they went through everything. And obviously the money wasn’t in our accounts because it didn’t exist,” he added.
Despite being offered “three deals” by the Post Office to plead guilty, Liz refused and was sent to prison.
Liz Roberts during happier times before she was jailed for theft – her son insists she was innocent
Chris believes that the 2019 High Court win by Horizon victims was a missed opportunity for the Post Office to look back at Capture cases.
“It would have been worth something then because my mum would have died knowing that everybody else knew she was innocent,” he said.
“My dad would have died knowing that the love of his life wasn’t vilified as a criminal.”
Chris wants his mother exonerated and “those actively responsible” to “stand up in court… and justify themselves”.
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Sky’s Adele Robinson examines Britain’s biggest miscarriages of justice
A Department for Business and Trade spokesperson said: “We were horrified to learn about the issues with the Capture system and are working closely across government to thoroughly examine Kroll’s independent report and consider what action should be taken.
“We continue to listen to postmasters and others who have been sharing their views on the report’s findings since its publication last month.”
Official accounts have revealed for the first time how much the King’s 2023 coronation cost UK taxpayers.
According to the accounts, the government spent £72m on the coronation – the first in Britain since Queen Elizabeth II’s in 1953.
The figure includes £50.3m of costs attributed to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS), which coordinated the coronation, and £21.7m in costs for the Home Office for the policing of the event.
By comparison, Queen Elizabeth II’s funeral and events during the period of national mourning cost the government an estimated £162m – £74m for the Home Office and £57m for the DCMS as well as costs to the devolved governments.
The figures come from the culture department’s recently released annual report and accounts.
The department said it had “successfully delivered on the central weekend of His Majesty King Charles III’s Coronation, enjoyed by many millions both in the UK and across the globe”.
People walk past a souvenir shop during the coronation. Pic: Reuters
It described the event as a “once-in-a-generation moment” which provided an occasion for the “entire country to come together in celebration”.
Both the King and Queen were crowned at Westminster Abbey in May last year, in a ceremony attended by dignitaries from around the world.
A star-studded concert at Windsor Castle, featuring Take That and stars such as Olly Murs, Katy Perry and Lionel Richie, took place the following night.
It had been described ahead of the event as being a “slimmed-down affair” – with the country still in the grips of the cost-of-living crisis – and accounts show an “underspend” related to the coronation of around £2.8m.
Olly Murs performing at the Coronation Concert. Pic: Reuters
Did coronation boost the economy?
Despite talk of a coronation boost, the UK’s economy actually contracted in the month of May 2023.
However, experts said that was mostly due to the cost of the additional public holiday for the event, which weighed on output.
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Each bank holiday costs the UK economy around £2.3bn, with the extra bank holiday for the late Queen’s funeral estimated to have cost around £2.4bn, according to government figures.
With the extra coronation bank holiday, data from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) showed negative growth of 0.1% during May 2023.
However, that was slightly better than economists had predicted ahead of the event.
Prior to the event, economic forecasters, the Centre for Economics and Business Research (CEBR), had predicted a boost of £337m for the UK’s economy due to the coronation – including £104m in extra pub spending and an estimated £223m spend from tourism to the UK during the period.
Hotel revenue was also said to be up by 54% compared to the same point in the previous year, while bookings for UK-bound flights for the coronation weekend jumped by 149% within 24 hours of the day being announced, according to TravelPort.
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