A Nigerian man has been sentenced to life in the UK for a 2017 fatal st@bbing.
The court found him responsible after new forensic evidence reopened the long unresolved case.
A Nigerian man, Lekan Akinsoji, has been sentenced to life imprisonment in the United Kingdom for the m8rder of 24-year-old Ahmed Deen-Jah during an attack that took place in Newham, East London, in 2017.
Akinsoji, 27, who is known within London’s drill music circle, and his associate, 27-year-old Sundjata Keita from E15, appeared at the Old Bailey on Friday, October 24, 2025. The court ordered that Akinsoji must serve at least 28 years before parole can be considered, while Keita received a minimum of 22 years.
Their conviction followed a lengthy investigation by the Metropolitan Police. Although both men were initially detained shortly after the incident, the case remained unsolved for several years until forensic breakthroughs finally linked them to the crime.
The court was told that Ahmed had entered a convenience store near Custom House station on April 2, 2017, when a masked attacker chased him inside and st@bbed him. Emergency services arrived, but he was pronounced d3ad at the scene.
Police later established that the attackers fled in a stolen vehicle that was abandoned and burned in Epping Forest. Renewed investigative work in 2023 uncovered crucial phone and DNA evidence that tied both defendants to the assault and the getaway car. They were rearrested in October 2024 and later charged.
Investigators said the act was connected to ongoing territorial disputes between rival groups in the area.
Detective Superintendent Kelly Allen, who oversaw the case, said the verdict came as a huge moment for Ahmed’s family after years of uncertainty. She stated that the attackers “planned a ruthless and unjustified assault and spent years hoping they had escaped accountability,” adding that the convictions show that persistence in cold cases can deliver justice.
CCTV footage shown to the court revealed Akinsoji entering the store behind Ahmed before carrying out the violent attack, while Keita waited outside in the stolen car.
Speaking after the sentencing, Ahmed’s father expressed relief, saying his family had been “living with pain for too long” and would now try to rebuild their lives, grateful to officers who refused to give up on the case.
Akinsoji and Keita are expected to remain in custody for decades before they can be considered for release.
