Church Wake Shooting Trial Shown CCTV Footage at Old Bailey

Jurors at the Old Bailey have been shown CCTV footage of a drive by shooting outside a church in north west London that killed a woman and left two others seriously injured, in a case prosecutors say involved careful planning and deliberate attempts to evade detection. The Harlesden church shooting took place on the evening of 14 December 2024 as mourners gathered for a wake.

Michelle Sadio, 44, a mother of two, had been attending a wake at the River of Life Pentecostal Church in Harlesden when shots were fired from a passing black car. Children as young as five were among those gathered outside the church at the time.

Perry Allen Thomas, 27, Shaquille Sutherland, 26, Amir Salem, 19, and Tahjin Sommersall, 19, are on trial charged with murder and attempted murder. All deny the charges. Sommersall also denies possession of a firearm with intent to endanger life.

Serious criminal cases of this nature are prosecuted under evidential and public interest tests set out by the Crown Prosecution Service, which determines whether charges proceed to trial at the Old Bailey.

The court heard that four gunshots were fired as the car approached the crowd. Footage shown to the jury captured screams and calls for help in the immediate aftermath of the attack.

Kenneth Amoah, 39, a contractor working for Transport for London, was shot in the back. He survived but has been left paralysed from the waist down. Kadeem Francis, 32, was struck in the foot.

Prosecutor Crispin Aylett KC told jurors that Allen Thomas had been on licence at the time of the Harlesden church shooting and was fitted with an electronic tag following a previous prison sentence. One of the licence conditions required the tag to be kept charged.

“The tag was reactivated a few minutes before the shooting happened,” Aylett said. “People engaged in crime attempt to circumvent ways to avoid being detected.”

He told the court it was no coincidence that the device resumed transmitting at 9.07pm, just six minutes before the shooting, suggesting Allen Thomas knew a crime was about to take place. Data later showed the tag placing him near his home address rather than the scene.

Prosecutors allege the defendants adopted what was described as a “belts and braces” approach to creating alibis. Sutherland was said to have visited a hair salon and used an Uber during the timeframe of the shooting, activity the prosecution claims was designed to establish he was elsewhere.

The jury also heard evidence suggesting two other men may have been involved in the attack but fled separately to Dubai. Police have so far been unable to locate them.

Cases involving electronic tagging and licence conditions are overseen by the Ministry of Justice, which sets monitoring requirements for offenders released under supervision in England and Wales.

The trial continues.

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[Image Credit | Family Handout]

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