64-year-old man jailed for life after ‘horrific’ murder of woman

A man has been jailed for 22 years after he was found guilty of murdering and burying a woman near a recreation ground,

Neculai Paizan, 64, of Peel Street, Notting Hill, was sentenced today after he was charged with the murder of 20-year-old Agnes Akom.

Ms Akom, who was also known as Dora and lived in Cricklewood, was reported missing in May last year. Metropolitan Police detectives established she had got into Paizan’s car two days before.

This vehicle was then tracked by police to a makeshift home inside a large shipping container, which was situated at North Acton Road in Brent.

A review of Agnes’ phone records and call data found she had regularly been in the vicinity of a phone belonging to Paizan over a 12-month period.

Met officers visited the shipping container to speak with Paizan and several heavy duty padlocks had been used to secure a door at the end of the container. No one was found inside.

Paizan arrived on scene believing that his container was on fire as the London Fire Brigade had been called to assist. There he admitted knowing Agnes and initially said that he had met with her about two weeks earlier.

In an interview with detectives, Paizan said that he had taken Agnes to his container on May 9, 2021, where after a short stay he had dropped her to a nearby cashpoint machine.

The Met said CCTV footage confirmed that Paizan and Agnes had entered the container on May 9 but did not show her leaving at any time after that day.

Further CCTV footage showed Paizan carrying a number of items from the container to his car before visiting a skip and Neasden Recreation Ground.

Inside the skip, officers found Agnes’ coat and a full forensic examination of the container found blood which matched Agnes’ DNA. Other bloodstains were subsequently discovered in Paizan’s car.

Agnes’ body was found on June 14, 2021, 36 days after she was reported missing, buried under a pile of logs and branches at Neasden Recreation Ground.

The post-mortem examination established that Agnes had suffered blunt force trauma to the head, having been struck at least 20 times.

Met detective chief inspector, Neil John, said: “The level of violence Paizan used in his attack on Agnes was truly horrific.

“What she suffered inside the container does not bear thinking about. Whilst it is not clear why he killed her that day, his attempts to hide his crime in the following hours and days show a calculated effort to ensure that, not only was Agnes never found, but that he would not be caught.

“Our enquiries, which started with phone data, quickly led us to identify Paizan as someone who had regular contact with Agnes. It was his actions that made him a suspect, and the resulting investigation led to him being charged.”

Pictured top: 20-year-old victim Agnes Akom (Picture: Metropolitan Police)