Two men convicted of man's murder in Sussex street
The pair will be sentenced tomorrow (19 November).
Two men have been convicted of the murder of a man who was attacked and stabbed in Sussex.
Muhammed Lamin Jassey, aged 26, was killed in Whitehawk Road in Brighton on Sunday, 5 April, by a single stab wound to his chest.
Bobby Smith, aged 22, of Coolham Drive in Brighton (left in picture), and 26 year-old Daryl Richardson, of Cumberland Road in Portsmouth (right in picture), have been convicted of his murder at Brighton Crown Court today (18 November).
They will be sentenced tomorrow (19 November).
The court heard that the attack was witnessed by three people, and caught on CCTV.
The victim’s blood was found on clothing owned by both men, which had their DNA on.
CCTV images showed Richardson and Smith together in the Lidl supermarket off Eastern Road, Brighton, minutes before the stabbing, wearing clothing identified as the same on which blood was later found.
Richardson admitted being at the scene and Smith denied being the second man caught on CCTV when Jassey was stabbed.
Detective Inspector Gareth Hicks of the Surrey and Sussex Major Crime Team said:
"Our investigation showed that the defendants acting together killed Muhammed Jassey.
"CCTV showed two men in dark hooded tops were seen leaving the flats at nearby Kite Place West, and the incident then happened moments later on the opposite pavement in Whitehawk Road.
"Richardson was seen to pick something up from the ground, which evidence showed was Mr Jassey's mobile phone, and the two men ran back to Kite Place West.
"Officers quickly arrived at the scene and went to the flat where they arrested both men.
"The phone was found concealed in the flat and witness evidence was heard that Richardson had tried to smash it before hiding it.
"To this day we have no idea what the motive was for this vicious and unprovoked attack against a defenceless young man that took him from his family in the prime of his life.
"Our thoughts are with Muhammed, his partner, and their young children, as well as his family."
In a statement, Muhammed Jassey's family said:
"Muhammed was a good son, our first born whose life was taken too soon.
"A kind, strong, handsome, funny, caring, loving person who always looked after people, he was also a brother, partner, father and part of a large and loving extended family.
"We are all devastated by his loss, we love him dearly and he will be missed every day.
"We ask that we are allowed continued privacy at this time to grieve over our tragic loss."