A MURDER jury has heard an eyewitness account of how a gang executed a drug war rival by shooting him in the street.
Daniel Herbert, of Holywell Close, Orpington, was shot dead in Clements Road, Bermondsey, in the early hours of August 17, 2009.
Bobby Winser, aged 22, from Bermondsey, and Michael Campbell, aged 25, from Camberwell, are standing trial at the Old Bailey accused of murdering the 27-year-old nightclub promoter.
Prosecutor Aftab Jafferjee told the jury that four men, including Winser and Campbell, targeted Mr Herbert because he was a member of a group who had burgled Winser’s home in Eldridge Court, Bermondsey, two or three times, to steal the cannabis he was producing there.
This afternoon, Mr Jafferjee read out a witness statement by a man who was watching from his home as the four men cornered and attacked Mr Herbert in Clements Road.
The witness said: “It sounded like a pack of wolves were on him, just taking their turn. He did not move an inch while they were kicking him.”
He added: “The man with the gun knelt down and picked Herbert up. He was semi conscious, his body was flopping.
“He held him by the front of his collar. His head was about two feet off the floor. The gun was placed pretty much against his head. It was like an execution.
“Everybody stepped back. The man [with the gun] shouted something and then bang. It was above his right temple.”
Mr Jafferjee told the court two women in a car had described seeing Mr Herbert being chased by the four men and shouting “help me”.
One of the women said she saw the four men attacking Mr Herbert and that when she tried to take a photo with her mobile phone one of the men pointed a handgun at her, so she and her friend fled.
Mr Jafferjee told the jury there was insufficient evidence to charge the two other men involved in the attack, and that it was unclear exactly who shot Mr Herbert.
He added: “It’s the prosecution’s case that each of them knew exactly how this would end.
“This was an execution and it was meant to be an execution. A message was going to be sent echoing through south London.”
The jury heard Winser and Campbell fled to the home of Winser’s uncle and grandmother, Darren and Doreen Mitchell, in Eastbourne in East Sussex after the attack.
Darren Mitchell, who Mr Jafferjee told the court is involved in drugs, asked a friend to listen to what Winser and Campbell had done and then advise them on the best course of action, the court heard.
However, this friend was secretly a police informant, and he told officers about Winser and Campbell’s involvement in the shooting.
The informant described to police a conversation with Winser where he told him he had instructed Campbell to shoot Mr Herbert.
Mr Jafferjee said: “He [Winser] went on to tell [the informant] that he only meant for Michael Campbell to shoot him in the leg.”
Mr Jafferjee told the jury the information the informant gave police is credible because he knew about specific details, such as the murder weapon being a .38 revolver, which were not in public knowledge at the time.
Darren Mitchell, aged 42, and 68-year-old Doreen Mitchell, are standing trial alongside Winser and Campbell.
Both Mitchells are accused of assisting an offender. It is alleged they gave false information to police following Mr Herbert’s death.
All four defendants deny all the charges.
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