Two men accused of murdering Leroy Mitchell outside a silent disco in Croydon reportedly fled to Somerset to avoid arrest, the Old Bailey heard on February 18.
Mitchell, 35, was fatally shot with a 12-bore shotgun at close range in the early hours of October 2, 2021, outside a headphones party in south London. Prosecutor Joel Smith KC described the killing as an act of “petty revenge” stemming from a fight between Mitchell and one of the defendants years earlier.
According to the prosecution, the quarrel between Mitchell and Alpacino Veii, 29, known as Alpo, dates back to May 2019 after an altercation at Granaries nightclub in Croydon. Veii had allegedly been punched in the face by Mitchell, and another individual was knocked down by a car during the confrontation. Veii’s anger reportedly escalated, with claims that he attempted to strike a vehicle with a hammer.
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The COVID-19 lockdown reportedly delayed any retaliation. On the night of Mitchell’s death, he had been at his mother’s house before attending the Granaries nightclub and later arriving at the silent disco around 4:30 a.m. His alleged killers, Veii and co-defendant Cimarron Dume-Gooden, 32, reportedly arrived earlier in a BMW.
At approximately 4:51 a.m., witnesses heard a loud bang resembling fireworks from the car park. As people fled the scene, one bystander discovered Mitchell’s body and called emergency services. Neighbors reported hearing the gunshot followed by screams and shouting. Police pronounced Mitchell dead at 5:26 a.m., with the post-mortem confirming a single close-range shotgun wound to the head.
The two suspects allegedly fled in a BMW with false number plates. By October 6, the vehicle had been burned along with the clothing the suspects wore and SIM cards, purportedly to eliminate evidence. They then traveled to Somerset, where they laid low for several days before returning to London, hoping to evade capture, the court heard.
While the shooting was not captured on CCTV, evidence from traffic cameras and mobile phones indicates Veii and Dume-Gooden’s involvement. Both men, from south London, deny the murder charges. Additionally, Kwabena Ofori, 29, and Issa Souleman, 29, along with Veii and Dume-Gooden, deny charges of perverting the course of justice between October 1 and 14, 2021.
The trial is ongoing.