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Image taken of Jeffrey Okafor inside the night club on the night of the murder
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Jeffrey Okafor caught on camera leaving Heathrow Airport
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Jeffrey Okafor caught on camera leaving Heathrow Airport
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A picture from Jeffrey Okafor's Facebook account
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Image taken of Jeffrey Okafor inside the night club on the night of the murder
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A picture from Jeffrey Okafor's Facebook account
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Murdered: Carl Beatson Asiedu
London's Metropolitan Police are offering £10,000 for information leading to the arrest and prosecution of a murder suspect - Jeffrey Okafor, who is believed to be hiding in Nigeria.
Detectives believe Jeffrey is responsible for killing 19-year old Carl Beatson Asiedu.
Carl died in the street after being stabbed in the heart in the early hours of 1 August 2009. Known as DJ Charmz, he was a successful DJ and well known on the clubbing scene. Carl had just performed a set at the Club Life nightclub in Goding Street and was with friends on the night he was killed.
As the friends walked along Goding Street towards Glasshouse Walk to their vehicle, they were approached by a group of males. An argument broke out between one of the men and one of Carl’s friends which led to an altercation, during which Carl was stabbed. The group fled the scene returning back to the club.
Carl was found collapsed on the street. He had become separated from his friends during the altercation who returned with others to find Carl lying in the road. They placed him in a car to try and get him to hospital.Shortly after setting off to seek help, local police officers came across the car carrying Carl and discovered him in the back suffering from a serious stab wound. Officers provided first aid.
The London Ambulance Service and London’s Air Ambulance were called and attended. Doctors tried to save Carl's life but sadly all medical assistance was unsuccessful and he was pronounced dead at the scene.
A post-mortem held at Greenwich mortuary that same day gave the cause of death as stabbing injuries.The friend that was with Carl in the moments leading up to his murder was also stabbed during the altercation. He was taken to hospital where he recovered from his injuries.
Jeffrey Okafor fled the United Kingdom (UK) on 17 August 2009 - 17 days after the murder. He was last captured on CCTV boarding an Air France flight at Heathrow Airport using his brother’s passport.
During the course of the investigation detectives made extensive enquiries and gathered CCTV evidence managing to identify the eleven who had been involved in the altercation. It is believed the motive for the attack lay in a trivial college dispute between Carl’s friend and Bolaji Kako-Are who was later convicted of violent disorder in relation to this stabbing.
Junior Okafor - Jeffery’s brother - pleaded guilty to assisting an offender. The evidence at court confirmed he gave his passport to his brother and travelled to Heathrow airport with him. CCTV at the airport showed the two brothers together before Jeffrey Okafor walked through to board the Air France flight.
On 12 August 2010, Junior Okafor was sentenced to four years’ imprisonment. Lynn Kanebi, their mother, was acquitted of the same charge following trial the same year.Bolaji Kako-Are and Abu Mansaray were convicted of violent disorder on 6 May 2011 and both were sentenced to three years imprisonment each. Junior Ademujimi-Falade was found guilty of violent disorder and manslaughter and sentenced to three years and eight years imprisonment respectively to run concurrently on 2 December 2011.
Detective Inspector Alison Hepworth of the Homicide and Major Crime Command (HMCC) said: “Carl was a talented DJ who had his whole life ahead of him. His family, whom fully support this new appeal, have had to endure five years of heartache and they are desperately seeking justice for Carl’s murder.
“Over the years a number of people have stood trial and have been convicted for their involvement in Carl’s death but there has always been one outstanding individual whom we sought to trace whom we believe delivered the fatal stab wound. That person is Jeffrey Okafor. There is strong evidence indicating his involvement on the night when Carl died.
“We know Jeffrey fled the UK to evade arrest and avoid facing justice. He flew to Nigeria entering the country illegally under a false identity. We believe he is still hiding somewhere there, possibly with a new identity, and possibly living a relatively comfortable life. We are working with the law enforcement agencies there in the hope of tracing him.
“We know there are people in UK supporting him in his new life in Nigeria and are shielding him from facing justice. I would appeal to those people - his friends or family - if you have in some way helped to aid his escape, now is your opportunity to do the right thing and tell us where he is.
“Likewise there may be family and friends in Nigeria who do not know the real reasons for Jeffrey being in Nigeria and may have been given false information by him. They may not be aware of the full circumstances as to why he hastily left the UK.
“We are appealing to those people who know Jeffrey Okafor previously in the UK and in Nigeria to come forward and assist us with our enquiries. Any information that you provide will be treated in the strictest confidence.
“We are also launching an appeal through Facebook. We know that Jeffrey was a Facebook user before the murder and we believe he may still be using Facebook as a way of communicating with friends and family back in the UK. We are hoping they may be able to shed some light on his whereabouts. It is also a direct way of reaching communities in Nigeria who may know Jeffrey and were previously unaware of his involvement in the murder.
“With a reward of £10,000 in place we are hoping that someone will be able to provide us with the information we require. Anyone with any information, no matter how small, is asked to contact us.”
Carl's family have made an emotional appeal for information in the hope it would lead to the arrest of Jeffrey Okafor. Carl’s father - Pastor John Asiedu stated that: "Five years have passed since Carl was murdered. I still feel the pain and get a lump in my throat whenever his tragic death crosses my mind, or when I hear that someone has been stabbed to death. Part of me died with him and I have to carry on living with what is left of me. Carl's tragic death has changed my view of life, people, the justice system and the world.
"I would urge Jeffrey Okafor to do the right thing and give himself up. I believe there are people in Nigeria who know him but don't know who he really is. I believe he is living comfortably with a new life. Sometimes, I wonder how such killers can lead normal lives with their families and friends who sometimes protect and shield them from the law.
"I am still serving the 'life sentence' of sorrow and pain embedded in my consciousness. My faith in Jesus Christ has helped to soothe the devastating emotional pain and heal the wound."
Anyone with any information is asked to contact the incident room on (+44) 0208 721 4005. A dedicated email address has been set up for those with information to provide details via email. Information can be emailed to jeffreyokaforwanted@met.police.ukAlternatively, you can contact Crime Stoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111 or provide information online by visiting: www.crimestoppers-uk.org