Four men guilty of murder of two rappers in east London
Saydi Abu Sheikh, 23, and Zakariya Jeilani Mohamed, 31, were killed in a revenge attack in Ilford in 2022
Four men have been found guilty of murdering two rappers in east London - who were fatally stabbed and shot in a gang-related revenge attack.
Saydi Abu Sheikh, 23, and Zakariya Jeilani Mohamed, 31, were killed in the bedroom of a house in Ilford during a midnight raid on October 25 2022, which lasted just five minutes.
A third man, Khalid Khalid, was shot through the head but survived along with two more men who ran or hid.
What the Old Bailey heard
The alleged attackers were caught on CCTV cameras outside the property, jurors at the Old Bailey heard.
They had donned burkas to hide their identities when they set off for the attack from a "mission control" flat a couple of miles away.
They travelled to the murder scene in a stolen Mitsubishi Outlander which was set on fire minutes afterwards, destroying all but one of their discarded robes.
Another defendant, Zain Mirza, had "procured" the murders in revenge for the killing of his brother in 2019.
He was in prison for a drugs offence but set about putting a plan into action after being released while being careful to remain at "arm's length", jurors were told.
Prosecutor John Price KC had said: "He was the one who most wanted it done. His motive was revenge."
Mr Sheikh, known as "Giddy", was said to have been a key member of an Ilford gang called Drillford.
The defendants were linked to the rival Only Manor (OM) gang in Newham, the court was told.
Rival gangs
The two east London gangs had been engaged in serious violence for around five years before the killings.
Chibuike Ohanweh, 21, of Romford; Ayaanle Adan, 20, from Barking; Mahad Gouled, 22, from Enfield; and Mirza, 21, of Newham, had denied double murder, two charges of attempted murder and perverting the course of justice.
Mirza claimed he was in Manor Park dealing drugs and celebrating a friend's birthday at the time of the killings while Ohanweh, Adan and Gouled also denied involvement.
A jury deliberated for more than 40 hours to find the four men guilty of all the charges.
A fifth defendant, Zakarie Mohamad, 19, of Kensington, had admitted perverting the course of justice by destroying the car.
He was cleared of the murder and attempted murder charges.
Judge Mark Lucraft KC remanded them into custody to be sentenced next Tuesday.