Three men have been jailed over the killing of 22 year-old drill music manager Bright Akinleye – who died in the lobby of a Euston hotel after being stabbed in February 2019.
Abdoulie Ceesay, 29, and Tashan Brewster, 32, were both convicted of Mr Akinleye’s murder in March, with a third man – Oliver Petts, 30, pleading guilty to the lesser charge of manslaughter during the trial at the Old Bailey.
Ceesay, of no fixed address, and Brewster, from Kennington Park Road, will both serve life sentences with a minimum term of 21 years. Bromley man Petts will serve five years.
Mr Akinleye had been filming a music video with a rapper he managed when he was attacked shortly before 10.45pm on February 18.
READ MORE: Euston murder: Three men found guilty of killing Bright AkinleyeDet Insp Jamie Stevenson said the incident last January had seen the “needless death of another young man”.
He added: “Our thoughts remain with Bright’s family as they continue to struggle to come to terms with him being snatched from them.
“This fatal stabbing stemmed from several people being involved in taunting on social media. I still cannot comprehend how it ended in such a violent murder.”
On the night of his death, Bright had been filming a promotional video for a drill music track with a rapper he managed, when he was violently attacked inside a rented AirBnB flat.
He was able to wrest the murder weapon – a knife – from his attackers and staggered into the lobby of the Wesley Hotel where he collapsed and died.
At trial, the court heard that Lewisham man Mr Akinleye was involved with a group of drill artists from Birmingham called 23 Drillaz and that Brewster had been recruited to help “punish” Mr Akinleye over a long-running “war of words” on social media.
Prosecutor Simon Denison QC told the court the attack was planned and a response to continued taunts between Mr Akinleye and Southwark twin brothers Jospin and Elvis Mayamba.
The twins’ friend, Ceesay, and Petts had been at a studio in Deptford where the video shoot began, before moving to Euston.
Ceesay called Brewster to the Euston flat, and the latter’s DNA was found on the handle of the murder weapon. More DNA evidence linked Brewster to a pair of trainers that were stained with blood.
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