Three men, including Joshua Oladele, who is believed to be from Nigeria, have been given life sentences for killing 25-year-old Hamza Iqbal in London.
This happened almost a year after Hamza was attacked and stabbed 23 times in what people are saying was a revenge attack.
The terrible event occurred on September 24, 2023. Hamza was with his friends when three men — Oladele, Micah Hines, and Ali Alamiri — who had big knives, stopped them.
It is believed that 28-year-old Dontae Smicle, who thought Hamza’s friends had hurt him before, told the three men to get back at Hamza. Smicle has since run away from the country.
On Wednesday, Snaresbrook Crown Court decided to give Oladele a life sentence with at least 28 years in prison, Hines at least 25 years, and Alamiri at least 24 years. The court also said that Smicle, who they think planned the attack, is still not caught.
Hamza Iqbal’s family is heartbroken. They said Hamza loved his family and was a big fan of Arsenal football team.
“Hamza was crazy about football. He might not have been the best player, but he loved Arsenal more than anything,” his family said.
During the trial, the court heard that the attack was due to gang rivalry. Smicle thought Hamza’s friends were behind an earlier attack that hurt him. When he saw them that night, he called Oladele, who has been in trouble with the law since he was a teenager.
Witnesses saw the three men in hoodies and masks, getting ready before they attacked. As Hamza and his friends tried to run away, Oladele chased Hamza and kept stabbing him even when he was on the ground, unable to defend himself. Then Hines came and hurt him even more.
Judge Rosa Dean, who is an important judge at Redbridge, said the attack was like a “punishment killing,” and talked about how scared Hamza must have been before he died.
Dean did not believe the attackers when they said they only meant to scare Hamza’s friends. She said, “None of you have shown any sadness for what you did during the trial. Everything you’ve done was to try to save yourselves and make what you did seem less bad.”
She also said that even though Smicle may have planned it, all three men were very willing to do the terrible crime.