Yaya Mbye

Yaya Mbye was stabbed in a children’s playground on the George Downing Estate in Stoke Newington at about 11.30pm on 28 January 2018.

He was stabbed several times after being chased by a group of three or four men wearing dark clothing.

It was thought the group had left the area in a silver Mercedes estate car which was later found destroyed.

Yaya Mbye died from a stab wound to the stomach. He had died from shock and haemorrhage an hour later in hospital. The stab wound had been 17cm deep.

When the police examined the scene they found wraps of white powder and a black substance which were later found to be class A drugs and an unspent 9mm bullet. The police said, 'It was capable of firing and looked at by a ballistic expert, but there's not a suggestion a gun was fired and it's possible it's a red herring. It's not beyond the realms of possibility for an estate in Stoke Newington to have a live bullet on the floor'.

The police later said, 'I believe there was a level of planning into this murder and I am interested in hearing from anybody who may have seen or heard anything in the area of the housing estate in the late part of Sunday evening'.

His inquest on 9 January 2020 returned a verdict of unlawful killing.

The police said that there were three possible lines of enquiry:

1. That he owed £1,000 to some one after he lost it that he had been stabbed because of that.
2. That he had been killed in a gang turf war.
3. That he was killed because of his involvement with county lines drug dealing.

It was heard that two days before he was murdered that he had told the police that he had lost £1,000 that didn't belong to him and that people were after him.

A witness that heard the attack said that he had been out on his kitchen balcony having a cigarette when he heard three loud screams. He said, 'It sounded like someone was in pain. I saw three guys right across from my balcony standing in a triangular form. Two were standing to the left of the male I now know to be the victim'. He added that because it was dark he didn't get a good look at the men or note what they were wearing and that he lost sight of them as he watched Yaya Mbye limping away.

The witness said that he then called out to Yaya Mbye and asked him if he was all right and said that Yaya Mbye replied, 'No' and that he then called 999 and ran downstairs to help him.

A toxicology report following his death showed that Yaya Mbye had probably been high on cocaine and possibly heroin at the time he was stabbed. However, his brother said that their family had had no idea that Yaya Mbye had taken the class A drugs.

However, it was thought that Yaya Mbye had been involved in county lines drug dealing after he was found in a drugs flat in Ware two days before his murder. It was thought that he had been smoking crack there.

The police said that they had been called to the flat on 26 January 2018 and found him there. They had been called out after reports were received that a gang from London had taken over the flat, cuckooing it, and were selling drugs from it. They said that Yaya Mbye had been at the flat, apparently having been dropped off there to sell drugs.

The police said that when they strip searched Yaya Mbye they found no drugs on him, but that before he left he had told them that he 'needed to find his crack pipe'. The police then dropped him off at Ware Station, but noted that 'He seemed to be under the influence of a substance. He was dozy and spaced out'. The police added, 'On the journey he made mention he had lost £1,000 that didn't belong to him and people were after him. He wouldn't say who they were. He asked if he could sleep at the police station, but it wasn't an option as we don't have a facility'.

However, following his murder, the police said that it was impossible to say whether that was the motive.

It was noted that there had been an ongoing dispute between two gangs and ir was considered that he might have been in the wrong place at the wrong time. However, the police added that there was no evidence to indicate that he had himself been involved in gang related activity.

It was also noted that a man arrested in April 2018 had been in possession of a phone that Yaya Mbye had been in frequent contact with on the day he was murdered. The police determined that call data suggested that the man had driven Yaya Mbye to Hertfordshire, but they said that when they questioned him he gave 'no comment' answers. The police added that following checks on CCTV and forensic evidence that they were unable to develop any evidence against the man regarding his communication with Yaya Mbye or having had taken him anywhere.

Yaya Mbye had lived in Albion Road, Stoke Newington.