Murderer facing life for ‘animalistic and savage’ attack on youth worker

A murderer who ploughed into a youth worker’s car before stabbing him to death with a group of armed men in an ‘animalistic’ and ‘savage’ attack is facing life behind bars.

Neron Quartey, 20, smashed a stolen black Honda Civic into 22-year-old of Kwabena Nelson’s car of the same make on Kemble Road, Forest Hill in south east London on 3 February this year.

The group of men ran to where Nelson’s car had come to rest and assaulted him with knives and other weapons.

One witness, who cannot be named, said: ‘It was not in a controlled manner. It was pure violence. It was animalistic. It was savage. It was all of the men who were involved in this savageness.’

Another said he could hear the attackers ‘chanting and making noises’ as they pummelled him as if they were at a football match.

‘I could also hear screams and more screams from the person on the floor, then finally the last scream was chilling and then it stopped,’ the witness said.

Quartey denied murder, claiming to have been ‘dazed’ for 20 to 30 seconds after his car careered into Mr Nelson’s, but he was today (thurs) convicted of the charge following an Old Bailey trial.

The jury unanimously convicted Quartey of murder after eight-and-a-half hours of deliberations.

Judge Anne Molyneux said: ‘There was here, of course, a loss of life, where Mr Nelson’s death was painful and tragic.

‘His loss is something that I know will be felt keenly by his family for many years to come.’

Quartey, who stood in the Old Bailey dock wearing glasses and a suit, remained emotionless as the foreman announced the guilty verdict.

Mr Nelson, also known as ‘Kobi’, had been suffering from a debilitating medical condition that caused him pain in his legs and joints and affected his mobility.

He died at the scene just before 3am despite the efforts of emergency medical staff, including a doctor who opened his chest and tried to massage his heart.

A post-mortem found Mr Nelson had suffered 14 incised injuries from sharp-edged instruments and died from blood loss.

Prosecutor Simon Mayo QC had told the court: ‘A group of men, including Quartey, decamped from their black Honda Civic, armed with weapons.

‘A number of them had knives.

‘They ran to where Mr Nelson’s car had come to rest and began to attack the car and then him.

‘They continued to attack him when he was out of the car, with Mr Nelson being stabbed multiple times.

‘Having inflicted injuries in Mr Nelson, the group of men, including this defendant, fled the scene leaving Mr Nelson bleeding and fatally wounded.’

Mr Nelson called Tracey Anaafi, the partner of Mr Nelson’s brother Kwadwo ‘Kojo’ Antwi-Adjei, at 1:30am.

The prosecutor said: ‘On the phone, Nelson said words to the effect of “Tracey, don’t let me die, I’ve been stabbed”.

‘His voice was loud and panicky and sounded as if he was out of breath.’

Quartey’s DNA was found on the car’s airbag, but throughout the investigation and trial he refused to give up the names of the other men involved in the attack.

He denied any involvement in the murder, claiming that he drove into Nelson’s car by accident, and told jurors he wouldn’t have carried out the attack because Mr Nelson had protected him from bullies when they were at school together.

When Mr Mayo asked him who the other men in the car were, Quartey said: ‘I am not prepared to say.

‘I know their nick-names but I don’t know who they are.’

Quartey, of Station Road, Wood Green, was convicted of murder and awaits sentencing this afternoon (thurs).

Ends.