London: In a shocking incident, a nine-year-old Indian-origin believed to be from Kerala is in a critical condition after suffering a gunshot wound from a drive-by shooting in eastern London. She is said to be "fighting for her life" after she and three others were shot in a "spontaneous" crime near a restaurant in the Kingsland High Street area of Hackney.
London's Metropolitan Police said the girl was inside a restaurant in the Kingsland High Street area of Hackney having dinner with her family when the shooting occurred on Wednesday night. “A nine-year-old girl, who was inside the restaurant having dinner with her family, suffered a gunshot wound and she remains in hospital in a critical condition. Our thoughts are with her and her family and they are being supported by specialist officers,” Met Police Detective Chief Superintendent (DCS) James Conway said in a statement.
Three unnamed men, aged 26, 37 and 42, were sitting outside the restaurant and were treated for gunshot wounds, although their conditions are said to be stable. “We do not believe that the girl and the men injured were known to each other. As with any child, she was an innocent victim of the indiscriminate nature of gun crime… Events such as these are rarely spontaneous. Someone knows who is responsible for this shooting that has left a little girl fighting for her life,” he said, appealing for information to assist the police investigation.
Who is the girl?
The identity of the girl is yet to be officially established, although reports from within London's Malayali community say her name is Lissel Maria, daughter of Vinaya and Ajeesh of Gothuruthu in Kochi. They were having a meal in a busy east London neighbourhood when the suspected gang-related shooting occurred, leaving the girl in a life-threatening situation.
“I know that local people will be extremely concerned by this incident. We share that concern and an urgent investigation has been launched to identify and apprehend those responsible,” DCS Conway noted in his statement. He said his officers were at the scene within minutes of the crime being reported and recovered a motorbike that was used in the shooting and which turned out to have been stolen.
"This is a fast-moving, complex investigation, and we will be working closely with our Specialist Crime colleagues to establish the full facts in the coming days," he added. Investigators are identifying other witnesses who were in the area around the scene at the time of the shooting and have appealed for footage from a phone or other device.
Indian-origin woman stabbed to death
In an unrelated incident, a 66-year-old Indian-origin woman was stabbed to death by a 22-year-old man at a bus stop in northwest London earlier this month. The accused was charged with the murder of Anita Mukhey, a grandmother working part-time at the UK's National Health Service (NHS).
Mukhey worked as a medical secretary at the NHS and was waiting at the Burnt Oak Broadway bus stop in the Edgware area of London last week when the accused Jalal Debella allegedly stabbed her in the chest and neck. According to reports, people on the spot screamed and shouted at the suspect to stop as the daylight attack sent shockwaves across the community.
Debella was arrested on suspicion of murder in the Colindale area of north London later on May 9 and charged with Anita Mukhey's murder and also for possession of an offensive weapon. He appeared at the Old Bailey Court in London and will enter his plea of guilty or not guilty at the next hearing in the case scheduled for August.
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