Detectives have named a teenager shot dead in an ambush at an unlicensed music event in east London.
Alex Ajanaku, 18, was sitting on a bench with a group of friends when shots were fired.
Paramedics battled to save his life and armed officers were scrambled to the scene on the Beaumont estate, Leyton, in the early hours of 1 September. He died at 02.28am just under an hour after he was shot.
A post mortem gave a preliminary cause of death as a single gunshot wound.
The detective in charge of the investigation described the attack as “senseless”.
Detective Chief Inspector Dave Whellams, from the Specialist Crime Command, said: “This was a senseless attack on a young man who had the rest of his life ahead of him. My thoughts are with Alex’s family and friends at this difficult time.
“We have a team of officers dedicated to finding those responsible and I would urge anyone who had information that could help the investigation to contact us immediately.
“We believe Alex had been at an unlicensed music event on the Beaumont Estate on the evening of Tuesday, 31 August. The majority of people had left the area by the time of the incident, but a small group remained and a were sitting on a bench when shots were fired.
“There is no place for gun crime on the streets of London and the Met is committed to removing firearms from the streets. We cannot do this alone and need the support of the community to share information and report concerns to help keep us all safe.”
A 43 year old man was arrested on Thursday, 2 September, on suspicion of murder. He has been bailed pending further enquiries until a date later in September.
Anyone with information is asked to call police on 101 or tweet @MetCC quoting CAD 436/01Sep. To remain anonymous contact Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.
