Two men who murdered innocent mum in drive-by outside church are jailed for life

Two men who murdered an innocent woman in a drive-by shooting at a wake have been jailed for more than 60 years.

Mum-of two Michelle Sadio, 44, was gunned down outside a wake at the River of Life Pentecostal Church in Willesden, north London, on December 14, 2024.

Perry Allen-Thomas, 27, and Amir Salem, 20, were found guilty of murder and two counts of attempted murder in relation to two other people who were wounded following a trial at the Old Bailey.

Judge Mrs Justice McGowan jailed both men for life at the same court today, ordering they serve minimum terms of at least 38 and 26 years respectively.

She said what had started out as a ‘happy, family orientated’ occasion turned into a ‘terrible tragedy’.

Even though children were present, the senior judge said: ‘This was not a shooting intent or intending to kill children – the murderers simply did not care who was killed.’

In a victim impact statement read to the court, widower Jean-Marie Sadio, whom Mrs Sadio worked with at the same law firm, said he had chosen to forgive her killers.

He said: ‘The ones who were behind what happened that night can never know what they have done. I have forgiven them because the future has to be my focus for the sake of my children.

‘I cannot have our son and daughter growing up with hatred in their hearts and bitterness for something they don’t have any power to fix.’

Addressing the defendants in the dock, he said: ‘Today, you stand guilty before all but, most importantly, you stand forgiven.

‘Do not burden yourself with guilt but an unquenchable and determined desire to change. If you succeed in this, you would have repaid society.’

Mr Sadio said it was too late for his family but not too late for the defendants, saying: ‘Amir and Perry, please use time to reflect, choose wisely and become – become the dream your parents and loved ones always longed for you to be. Their pain must also be unspeakable.’

Previously, the court heard how Ms Sadio had been among about 100 mourners, including children as young as five, attending the wake for Dianne Boatong, 80.

At around 9pm, guests were outside on the pavement when a black Kia pulled up and shots were fired into the crowd.

Ms Sadio, a legal administrator, was hit and died at the scene.

Transport for London contractor Kenneth Amoah, 39, was hit in the back and paralysed below the waist, and self-employed Kadeem Francis, 32, was shot in the foot.

The intended target was said to have been a rapper called Trapstar Toxic, real name Adetokunbo Ajibola, 33, who was at the event.

Allen-Thomas, from Wembley, north London, was said to have helped organise the shooting but ensured he was elsewhere at the time.

The Kia used in the attack had been stolen and was being driven with false number plates.

Salem, from Wembley, had bought some of the petrol used to set the vehicle on fire after the shooting, jurors heard.

On the night of the shooting, Salem was in contact with the Kia occupants and reported back to Allen-Thomas.

At least four shots were fired, although it was not known who in the Kia pulled the trigger.

The prosecution had alleged two of the men in the Kia had fled the country after the incident.

The weapon used in the shooting had been used twice before in the previous few months, and was said to be a ‘gang gun’.

In one of the earlier incidents, the occupant of a car opened fire on a group of males outside a pizzeria, discharging 11 rounds and hitting one person in the ankle.

There was no suggestion the defendants were involved.

During the trial, the defendants denied being involved in any way or knowing anything about the incident.

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