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CCTV image of one of the witnesses to the murder of Daniel Ross. |
Bullet killed the dream of Dan’s children
Mother makes heartfelt appeal for murder witnesses to come forward
THIS is one of the grainy CCTV images (left) of people leaving a King’s Cross night club moments after a man was shot dead on the dancefloor who the police want to interview as witnesses.
Detectives want to speak to them in the hope they can shed light on the investigation into the killing of Daniel Ross, 22, in Scala last September.
So far police have struggled to locate a single witness – despite around 1,000 revellers present at the club, in Pentonville Road, that night.
The pictures were released as Mr Ross’s parents, Jean and Ivan Ross, from Kilburn, made another appeal for witnesses to speak out against the gunman.
Mrs Ross said: “Daniel was an intelligent young man with natural style and charisma who always displayed manners and respect for his elders. That bullet killed the dream of his children, and took away my precious son, someone who had everything to live for.”
CCTV images were launched as Trident, the police department which specialises in black on black violence, announced a £20,000 reward for information.
Mr Ross, a-father-of-two, was shot in the head at point blank range as he stood on a 20 foot platform near to the DJ cage. After he was shot he fell into the arms of his friend, but died in the club. Police are unable to determine where the shots were fired from.
Although detectives have arrested eight people in connection with the killing, they have been thwarted by a lack of witnesses. Detective Chief Inspector Fiona Mallon, the officer in charge of the case, says she believes she knows who killed Mr Ross, but having interviewed only 30 out of possible 1,000 people, she is yet to locate an eye-witness. She said: “I intend to ID every person in the club that night. To walk into a nightclub at 3.45 am and shoot someone where others could have got injured is brazen and the gunman would have needed assistance to get away.”
In an effort to bolster potential witnesses who may be fearful of reprisals, she said the police could offer an array of identity protection techniques, including voice moderators that alter vocal sound and screens in court. Names and addresses could also be changed, she added.
DCI Mallon added: “Although we’ve made eight arrests in connection with the murder, we have not been able to press charges due to a lack of witnesses.”
She was concerned that some clubbers may have left the venue unaware a murder had taken place. She has been checking online ticket bookings and coach companies in her efforts to trace people.
But she said she was not worried that a previous murder in the club – of Wajahat Sheikh, who died after he was struck in the head in 2002 –has remained unsolved.
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