BY LUCY CAULKETT
Police have today named a dead man shot and stabbed last Tuesday, as 20 year-old Ola Raji, after arresting a 24 year old for his murder. Raji died after he was shot and stabbed cycling along East Surrey Grove in Peckham last Tuesday night. A post-mortem examination which took place two days later found the cause of death to be a single gunshot wound to the chest. The suspects left the scene on foot in the direction of Sumner Road , using a short cut route through from Cator Road. It is yet again sad to see a young life wasted, whatever the reason for it. Turf wars and drug related killings are particularly rife in London where very little is resolved through communication especially in circles where violence is seen as a route to respect and street credentials. Police say ”a small pouch or bag was stolen from him after the murder”.
It is even more painful and shows an alarming level of wickedness when killers express utter brutality and hate in the execution of their crime . We do not have to be all knowing to figure out that the victim had deeply upset his killer for one reason or another, whether it was due to a misunderstanding, money or gang related, or to do with a girl, there was no need to stab and kill, then have the heart to also rob his property. How evil are people these days? London youths and indeed all people should always be careful how they treat others in order to avoid this type of fatal ending, but even the so called ‘bad boys’ of London or anywhere should have some conscience whenever they execute vengeance. This killing was terrible, not that any killing is not terrible. The killer may have had a reason to be aggrieved, but youths these days need to learn how to reason with foresight and seek a way to diffuse a problem. The trouble these days is that youths of today do not know what it means to diffuse anything.
I am 29 years of age, heading for 30, but when I remember as a 20 year old girl finding most people my age to be very immature. Boys were even more immature than girls, always putting on a false image of toughness. Many end up dead or in jail, merely confirming their ignorance and stupidity. In this case, police say there were witnesses to the incidence and that a car drove down Rosemary Road at around 10.30pm that may have seen the suspects running up the road in the opposite direction.
Detective Chief Inspector (DCI) Will Reynolds of the Homicide and Major Crime Command leads the investigation said: “We believe that there were witnesses to this incident and I would like to encourage anyone who has information that could assist our investigation to come forward. We believe that after being shot Ola may have had some property stolen from him. Killers always expect to escape detection, but in most cases they get caught.
“One week on from Ola’s death, I would like to urge local people and anyone visiting the estate at the time of the murder to think about where they were and what they saw. It is essential that we piece together his movements that evening and understand why he was in East Surrey Grove at that time. Did you know Ola? Were you with him that evening? Do you know why he was there? Many in London often know the killers of victims, but sometimes also know the circumstances surrounding a killing and make a judgement to talk or be quiet. Nothing will bring the victim back, and if the victim contributed to the circumstances that led to his death, he has paid a heavy price. Justice still needs to be done.
