Legal News

A man who was charged with the murder of a teenager in a shop in London’s Oxford Street during the Boxing Day sales last year has been cleared of the charges.
Seydou Diarrassouba, 18, of Mitcham, south west London, died after being attacked in the Foot Locker sports shop, near Bond Street Tube station.
Jermaine Joseph of Tottenham, north London was charged with the murder of Diarrassouba who, the court was told, had acted in self defence when he was chased by Mr Diarrassouba.
The 23 year old Joseph had been cleared of murder and manslaughter. The trial at the Old Bailey had lasted for four weeks where the court heard that Mr Diarrassouba had received a 10 cm wound from a knife which broke due to the force of the blow.
Mr Joseph told the trial Mr Diarrassouba had come at him with a knife.
He said Diarrassoub had chased him and he had to stab him to stop him from being stabbed by the victim. It was like a dog chasing a cat and the cat still shows its claws he said.
The jury was told Mr Joseph was acting in "classical self-defence" against the leader of one of the most dangerous gangs in London.
The criminal law solicitor defending said that Joseph was in fact the victim and not the aggressor in the case.
He told the jury that Mr Diarrassouba had the street name of "nutz", which was a reference to his violent behaviour, and was the leader of the ABM (All 'Bout Money) gang.
You can see what is said about that gang - one of the most dangerous in London," Mr Bromley-Martin said.
In the past Mr Diarrassouba had been violent from a very young age and had inflicted grievous bodily harm by breaking someone's jaw when he was 14 years old, the lawyer told the court.
Witness after witness has said that it was Mr Diarrassouba and his associates who were the aggressors.
One gets a pretty idea from that of who these people were and what they were like, they are like, and it gives everyone an idea what it was they were intending to do when they started to chase Jermaine Joseph on 26 December, the criminal law solicitor told the court.
The prosecution had said the stabbing was the result of "gang violence" on the street.
Mark Heywood QC, prosecuting, said the grievance was evidently a deep and powerful one which had immediately turned into an ugly and brutish violence in broad daylight in a packed street on a busy shopping day of the year.
Mr Joseph's co-defendant Thulani Khumalo was acquitted of murder and manslaughter during the same trial on 15 November