Trio face long jail terms after killing Lewisham drill rap manager

Three men face long jail sentences for killing a drill rap manager who was stabbed during the filming of a promotional music video following an online “war of words”.

Bright Akinleye, 22, was stabbed three times with a large hunting knife in February last year.

During the attack the Lewisham victim grabbed the knife and left a trail of blood as he ran 150 yards to a hotel foyer where he collapsed and died from a leg wound.

Abdoulie Ceesay, 28, of the Kingslake Estate in Walworth, and Tashawn Brewster, 31, of Kennington Park Road, Kennington, were found guilty of his murder.

Co-accused Oliver Petts, 30, from Bromley, had pleaded guilty to manslaughter, which was accepted by the prosecution.

Mr Akinleye, pictured above, a sports management graduate from Lewisham, was involved with a group of drill artists from Birmingham called 23 Drillaz.

He was manager for one of the rappers, who was connected with the video shoot where he was attacked. Filming of the video started in Deptford and continued at a flat in Euston, where the stabbing would eventually take place.

Mr Akinleye had been in a dispute with two twins, with whom Ceesay was friend, on the Aylesbury Estate in Southwark.

Messages and videos had been shared on social media in which threats were made.

When Ceesay saw Mr Akinleye during the music video shoot in Starcross Street in Euston on February 18 last year, he saw an opportunity to act on behalf of his friends, and so he arranged the attack.

Petts was tasked with collecting Brewster – a friend they recruited who did not know the victim.

Petts picked Brewster up from his home and drove him to the venue where Mr Akinleye was attacked and stabbed.

A struggle ensued as Mr Akinleye tried to escape. He ran into the nearby Wesley Hotel where he collapsed in the foyer and died of his injuries as paramedics battled to save him.

He had received three stab wounds to both thighs, and cuts to his hands as he tried to defend himself.

A ‘rambo’-style knife was found next to him, which Mr Akinleye had managed to take from his attackers.

Police officers followed the trail of blood from the hotel to where Mr Akinleye was attacked. Ceesay, Brewster and Petts had driven away from the scene.

Brewster was identified after his DNA was recovered from the handle of the knife used to stab Mr Akinleye, and a pair of trainers which also had the victim’s blood on them and had been hidden in a nearby flat.

The following day, February 19, Ceesay stopped using his mobile phone and Petts disposed of the Mercedes which was used to drive to and from the scene.

A fourth defendant, Silas Loko, 27, of Southwark, was cleared of murder.

Catherine Gould, from the Crown Prosecution Service, said: “This was a targeted hit, planned after chancing upon Bright during the recording of a music video.

“There was no reason for the defendants to involve themselves in what had been a dispute between Bright and others. However, Ceesay saw this as an opportunity to win some favour with his friends by launching an attack on Bright when he was outnumbered and defenceless.

“This stabbing was an ambush and we have no evidence Brewster had ever previously met the man whose life he so cruelly put an end to.

“Our thoughts are with the family and friends of Bright Akinleye at this difficult time. I hope that these verdicts provide a sense of closure.”

Brewster, Ceesay and Petts will be sentenced at the Old Bailey on March 26.