Tanesha Melbourne-Blake, 17, died in a drive-by shooting in Tottenham on April 2, 2018 (Picture: PA)
A teenage girl who was killed in a gang shooting asked her friend to call her mum as she lay dying from a gunshot wound, a court has heard.
Tanesha Melbourne-Blake, 17, was the unintended victim of the fatal drive-by shooting in Northumberland Park, Tottenham, on April 2, 2018, the Old Bailey heard.
Michael Clarke, 36, is on trial for Tanesha’s murder and for possessing a firearm with intent to endanger life.
He was allegedly in the vehicle from which the fatal shot was fired.
Prosecutor Philip McGhee read a statement today from Tanesha’s friend, Jace Stockley, who was with her and other friends on Chalgrove Road when their group was shot at from a passing car.
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Ms Stockley’s statement said: ‘I was about four paces behind Tanesha.I heard a car coming down the road, but I didn’t see it.
‘I then heard Tanesha shout: ‘Jace, duck!’, and I heard gunshots.
‘As she said this, she turned to face me. I ducked and Tanesha shouted. Gunshots were still being fired.
Tanesha begged her friend to call her mum as she lay dying from a fatal gunshot wound (Picture: PA)
‘Tanesha shouted: ‘Jace, I’ve been shot’ as I ducked.’
Ms Stockley ran over to Tanesha, who fell into her arms, begging her to ‘Call my mum. Call my mum,’ the statement said.
The shooting happened at roughly 9.30pm, with only a matter of seconds between the initial and final shots, Ms Stockley estimated in the statement.
Ms Stockley’s statement said: ‘Everyone liked Tanesha – no one would hurt her. She has not done anything that would cause anyone to shoot her.’
The court was previously told that Clarke lived in Wood Green and was in the vicinity on the evening of the shooting.
Prosecutor Jocelyn Ledward KC opened the case last week and said: ‘The prosecution case is that she (Tanesha) was shot during a ride-out from neighbouring Wood Green into Northumberland Park, as a result of a slight to a man named Marcus La Croix in the early hours of April 1, 2018.
‘The ride-out was intended to result in death or serious injury through the use of a self-loading pistol, which was discharged three times in Chalgrove Road, although Tanesha may not have been the intended target.’
Tanesha was the unintended victim of the fatal shooting (Picture: PA Archive/PA Images)
A ‘longstanding enmity’ and territorial rivalry between criminal gangs in north London was outlined by the prosecutors in the trial.
The Northumberland Park Killers (NPK) and the Wood Green Mob (WGM) were named by Ms Ledward.
It was alleged that Tanesha’s murder was not just a continuation of the violence but had its own catalyst.
Clarke has denied the charges against him and has insisted that he was not in the vehicle, jurors have heard.
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His friend, La Croix, who was also known as Bobby Slater, lived in Hackney, north-east London, and also had a long-standing link to Wood Green, jurors were told.
A day before Tanesha’s murder, La Croix was assaulted by a group of men with links to the NPK in the area of Farringdon, north London.
Ms Ledward said: ‘The prosecution case is that this defendant was a close associate of Marcus La Croix, so close that he would be prepared to and was the first to act in the event that La Croix was attacked or publicly humiliated, and that is precisely what he did.’
The Old Bailey trial continues.
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