Two convicted of killing doting Clapham dad-of-two Luther Edwards after row over girlfriend

Two men who ambushed and fatally stabbed a man to death after a boxing match in 2016 have been convicted of manslaughter.

Marlon Thomas, 28, of Woodcote Place, West Norwood, and Jerome Osbourne, 33, of Somerset Avenue, Chessington were found guilty of manslaughter at the Old Bailey on Wednesday, 20 June, following a seven week trial.

They will be sentenced over the death of Luther Edwards, 31, from Clapham, at the same court on Friday, 29 June.

On 29 July 2016, police were called at approximately 10.35pm to reports of a stabbing near Bethnal Green Underground Station.

Officers and paramedics attended and a man – later identified as Luther – was found collapsed on the forecourt of a petrol station at the junction of Old Ford Road and Cambridge Heath Road.

He was taken by ambulance to an east London hospital where he was pronounced dead at about 23:40hrs.

A post-mortem examination held at Poplar Mortuary gave the cause of death as a stab wound to the heart.

Brixton-raised Luther, a father of two, had been at an amateur boxing event held at York Hall in Old Ford Road on the night of his murder. He arrived at the venue in his own car in the company of three friends at about 7pm.

He had become involved in a row inside the Benthal Green venue and was then ambushed and attacked by numerous people as he left the venue.

He was stabbed twice but he managed to stagger away into Cambridge Heath Road, a busy main road, and into the petrol station forecourt.

Some of his attackers followed him onto the forecourt and continued to assault him. Luther then collapsed from his injuries and subsequently died.

Enquiries revealed that during the boxing match, Luther had been messaging his girlfriend of two years who was not at the event. Within the messages was a photo of Marlon Thomas, who had been Luther’s girlfriend’s partner several years earlier. It is believed that the altercation started after Luther insinuated to Thomas that she was with a better man now.

Luther and Thomas had not met until the evening of 29 July 2016.

Thomas then instigated the attack on Edwards but Osbourne threw the initial punch which started the melee and Thomas attacked him relentlessly throughout the incident.

Case Officer DS Brett Hagen stated: “This investigation was a lengthy and challenging one, but ultimately justice has prevailed. I would like to take this opportunity to thank my team for their painstaking work in reviewing thousands of hours of CCTV footage, which led to the arrest, charge and conviction of the individuals who carried out this savage attack.

“Luther’s family, several of whom were present on the night, have displayed incredible courage and patience throughout the last two years and I hope they can take some solace in the convictions today.”