A man and a boy have been convicted of murdering Kalabe Legesse, 29, in Peckham Rye Park, on December 30, 2022.
Nah’shun Thomas, 20, of Bournemouth Road, Peckham, and a 17-year-old, who cannot be named for legal reasons, were found guilty following a trial at Croydon Court on Friday, January 5.
The victim’s family paid tribute to a man “loved by everyone” and said they’d “never understand why he was murdered over a mobile phone”.
Kalabe had been sitting on a bench by the park cafe on Strakers Road when the defendants approached him riding bikes at around 8pm.
The pair had already committed two robberies shortly before and, armed with a knife, threatened to steal Kalabe’s phone.
Kalabe was stabbed once in the chest and, despite the best efforts of paramedics and officers, died at the scene.
A post-mortem examination gave the cause of death as a haemorrhage from a single stab wound to the heart.
Kalabe had been on the phone to a friend when the defendants approached him.
The friend would later tell police that he heard the suspects saying: “Where are you from?’ and “What have you got on you?”.
However, Kalabe’s phone wasn’t found at the scene by emergency services or crime scene detectives.
“Violence will not have the last word”: Candlelit vigil held for man killed in Peckham Rye Park
The defendants had fled the scene so officers trawled through hundreds of hours of CCTV to trace their movements.
Officers identified their home addresses and both were arrested on suspicion of murder on Thursday, January 19, 2023.
Police enquiries revealed the defendants had committed two other mobile phone robberies shortly before Kalabe’s murder.
Both victims of those robberies reported that the defendants had a knife and said “Where are you from?’ and ‘What have you got on you?”.
In the early stages of the trial, the defendants pleaded guilty to both of those robberies.
When officers searched the home address of the 17-year-old, they found, in his grandmother’s bedroom, a sheathed black-handled hunting knife wrapped in a black puffer coat.
Forensic examination found traces of Kalabe’s blood inside the sheath.
Both were charged on January 21, 2023, and appeared at Croydon Magistrates’ Court, where they were remanded in custody pending trial.
DI Guttridge said: “My thoughts today are with Kalabe Legesse’s family as they continue to come to terms with their loss. It is my sincere wish that they find some comfort in knowing that justice has been served.”
A spokesperson for Mr Legesse’s family said: “Nothing can bring back our son Kalabe. He was doing nothing wrong on the night that he was killed and we will never understand why he was murdered over a mobile phone.
“The defendants have not shown any remorse for what they did to him. We have recently passed the anniversary of his death; Christmas and New Year for us will never be the same again.
“Kalabe was loved by everyone he met and had an exciting future ahead of him. He will never be able to have a family of his own, and our family will never have him back.
“We are grateful to the investigation team for their hard work for over a year to bring these people to justice.”
Exactly a week after Kalabe was murdered, his family, neighbours and friends gathered for a tearful vigil at the same spot he was killed.
Speaking at the vigil, Rev Dele Ogunyemi of St Anthony and St Silas said “violence must be challenged” and the community would “stand shoulder to shoulder”.