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Martin Dinnegan |
Islington news | Urban posturing | Martin Dinnegan | Teenage gangs | Old Bailey | Holloway | Aftab Jafferjee
Murder trial told of 'urban posturing' scourge
THE deadly surge in knife attacks is due to “urban posturing”, the Martin Dinnegan murder trial jury heard yesterday (Thursday).
Show-offs carrying blades or other weapons to look big have become a scourge on our streets, the Old Bailey heard.
The “poser” syndrome led to the tragic death of the 14-year-old Holloway schoolboy, said prosecutor Aftab Jafferjee.
“This is a case which led from dirty looks to death in an hour,” he told the court. “The case graphically illustrates the growing scourge of urban posturing.”
The schoolboy fled from a confrontation but was pursued by a mob, cornered and knifed in the back close to his home in June last year.
“He probably didn’t know he was running for his life,” Mr Jafferjee said, as the dead teenager’s parents listened at the side of the court.
The trial will highlight the increasing problem of “posturing” by gangs of youngsters ?roaming aimlessly and looking for trouble – with the ages of those involved getting lower.
Attackers “are not just prepared to use a weapon but to be seen to do so by their peers”, the prosecutor added.
Six weeks have been set aside for the trial of four youths who deny murdering Martin, whose parents received a letter of condolence from Prime Minister Gordon Brown.
The accused, aged 16 and 17, cannot be named by court order as they are juveniles. The other accused are Sean Clark, 19, from Bennett Court, Axminster Road, Holloway, and Rene John-Baptiste, 21, from Plaistow, east London. They all deny a murder count.
Martin, a pupil at St Aloysius College in Hornsey Lane, Archway, lived with his family in Evershot Road, Finsbury Park.
He was attacked on the evening of June 26 last year at the junction of Tollington Way and Axminster Road, Holloway. Four fatal knife wounds were inflicted.
Mr Jafferjee said Martin and his friends were on a bus going to a park to talk to some girls when they encountered another group on bicycles. After “dirty looks” were exchanged the numbers of those involved increased as did the threat of violence. Martin played a part in the escalation of trouble at first but was alone and no threat when he was stabbed.
The jury heard that some of the accused and some witnesses claimed that Martin had a long- bladed knife hidden up his sleeve.
Mr Jafferjee said issues in the case would be “hotly challenged” by defence lawyers and that there was a suggestion that others should be in the dock facing trial.
The trial continues. |
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