07/01/2005

Three youths remanded in Damilola murder case

Three youths have appeared in court, charged with the murder of ten-year-old schoolboy, Damilola Taylor.

The three teenagers from Peckham, Hassan Jihad, 19, and two brothers, aged 16 and 17, who cannot be named for legal reasons, were remanded in custody.

They will appear before Camberwell Green Magistrates Court on January 14, charged with the murder of Damilola, who was stabbed on his way home from school in Peckham, on November 27, 2000.

The ten-year-old boy bled to death in a stairwell in the North Peckham Estate soon afterwards.

The three accused, who are all unemployed, would have been aged between 12 and 14 at the time of Damilola's death.

Detectives revealed that they had been arrested previously for questioning in connection with the November 2000 killing, but were subsequently released without charge.

The case had been kept open, after four youths were cleared of the murder in 2002. Detectives have been using DNA techniques, in order to collect new evidence.

The investigation also involved the search of several addresses in the Peckham area in September last year.

(KMcA/SP)

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05 January 2005
Three arrests made in Damilola Taylor murder case
Three men have been arrested in connection with the murder of schoolboy Damilola Taylor, the Metropolitan Police have confirmed. The men were arrested on January 5 and are being held for questioning at a south London police station.
09 October 2006
Damilola killers get eight years
Two brothers have been jailed for killing schoolboy Damilola Taylor nearly six years ago. Danny and Ricky Preddie, aged 18 and 19, from Peckham, south London, were sentenced to eight years' youth custody at the Old Bailey on Monday. They had been convicted of manslaughter in August.
04 April 2006
Brothers acquitted of Damilola murder
Two brothers have been acquitted of the murder of schoolboy Damilola Taylor. The two teenagers, aged 17 and 18, were also cleared of assault with intent to rob. However, the jury was discharged after failing to reach a verdict on manslaughter charges.
03 April 2006
Man found not guilty of Damilola murder
A 20-year-old man has been found not guilty of the murder of schoolboy Damilola Taylor in south London. Hassan Jihad was cleared on charges of murder, manslaughter and assault with intent to rob at the Old Bailey today.
09 August 2006
Brothers found guilty of Damilola killing
Two teenage brothers have been found guilty of killing ten-year-old Damilola Taylor in 2000. Danny and Ricky Preddie, now aged 18 and 19, were convicted of manslaughter at the Old Bailey. The brothers, who were 12 and 13 at the time of the killing, were cleared of murder and assault in April. They had denied the charges against them.