Albert Amofa (pictured) was stabbed to death in Croydon
(Picture: Metropolitan Police)Two men have been convicted of murder and a third for perverting the court of justice over the killing of Albert Amofa.
The 33-year-old dad was stabbed to death in Croydon on December 15, 2019 after the attackers mistakenly believed Mr Amofa was in possession of a large quantity of cannabis.
Donald Owusu, 25, of no fixed address, and Harvey MacFoy, 26, of Beachborough Road, Bromley, were both found guilty on May 9 of the murder Mr Amofa following a trial at the Old Bailey.
A third man, Theo Brown, 32, of Horsham, West Sussex, was found guilty of perverting the course of justice for his role in disposing of the car used in the attack.
MacFoy pleaded guilty to perverting the course of justice at the start of the trial.
Mr Amofa’s family said they were “pleased” with the outcome of the trial.
In a statement, they said: “Albert’s death was senseless and cruel. He suffered for 48 hours in intensive care before passing away. That will always stay with us.
“Albert is not a statistic in black on black crime, he was a father, son, brother, uncle, cousin, friend and a good man, who is loved and we miss him dearly. We are glad that the men who committed this crime have been found guilty, but the cycle of violence needs to end.”
The court heard how Mr Amofa and a female friend had arrived home and parked his car in Drake Road, Croydon shortly after 9.10pm.
As Mr Amofa attempted to get out of the car, he was ambushed by two men – one of whom was Owusu - who pushed him back into the vehicle.
The woman, who had already exited the car, was grabbed by MacFoy and forced into the rear of the car.
The assailants demanded the keys to the car but could not locate them and during the struggle, Owusu stabbed Mr Amofa in the leg multiple times.
Panicking, all three suspects ran from the car in the direction of Onslow Road, leaving Mr Amofa – who had rolled out of the car onto the pavement – bleeding heavily.
The woman was unharmed.
The emergency services were called and Mr Amofa was taken to hospital where he died the next day.
A murder investigation was launched and quickly focused on the direction the suspects had been seen fleeing in, in nearby Onslow Road.
CCTV identified a Peugeot car that detectives were adamant the suspects had used.
Just over a week after the murder, a car-hire firm reported one of their Peugeots as stolen – the company confirmed that the car was fitted with a device that recorded its location each time the engine was turned on and off, enabling them to track its location.
The car had been hired around a week earlier and had been paid for by the girlfriend of MacFoy.
In the period after being hired on December 13, the car was stationary close to an address in Bromley to which MacFoy had links.
Detectives began to pair CCTV with the locations they knew the car had been parked and quickly identified that MacFoy and Owusu had been regularly using this
Police also found the car had been driven and parked in Onslow Road, Croydon minutes before the attack on Mr Amofa – the car was then shown to have driven away from the area almost immediately after the suspects were seen fleeing Drake Road.
Both MacFoy and Owusu were arrested.
Further analysis of various mobile phones in their possession revealed they had been in regular contact with each other at key times over the period of days around Mr Amofa’s murder.
Their phones also placed them at significant locations, backing up the evidence provided by the car data and CCTV.
The car itself was found abandoned with false number plates fitted in a residential street in Nottingham. It had been driven there by Theo Brown, while MacFoy travelled in convoy in a van.
The court heard that Brown, a mechanic, had removed the tracking device from the car prior to the journey north.
Once the car was examined, it was found to contain traces of Mr Amofa’s blood, indicating that either Owusu or MacFoy, or both, had been in the car after the attack.
Following the murder, Mr Amofa’s car had been seized by police so it too could be forensically examined. During this work, a tracking device was discovered fixed to the underside of the car.
The data for this device was obtained and revealed further evidence of the planning by Owusu and MacFoy. The device had been purchased from a shop in Camden on November 29 – officers used phone data so show that Owusu and MacFoy were in the vicinity of the shop at the time the purchase was made.
They also used phone data, along with the movements of the hire car, to show that this tracker was driven to Onslow Road, Croydon in the early hours of 13 December – it then became stationary, having been fitted to the underside of Mr Amofa’s car.
By tapping into the movements of Mr Amofa’s car, Owusu and MacFoy were able to precisely time their arrival in Onslow Road on the night of the murder, to coincide with Mr Amofa’s return from his trip to west London.
The second man who entered the front of the car with Owusu during the attack on Mr Amofa has never been identified.
Detective Inspector Jo Sidaway, who led the investigation, said: “Owusu and MacFoy put a considerable amount of planning and resource into ensuring they knew where Albert would be so they could apprehend him. Why did they do this? They appear to have been convinced, having seen chat on social media, that Albert was dealing drugs and would be in possession of a large quantity of cannabis.
“I believe their initial intention was to rob Albert of the drugs they thought he had but, in the disarray that ensued, this escalated into a fatal attack.
“Throughout this trial, Albert’s family and friends have shown great strength and character – I can only hope that the conviction of Owusu and MacFoy can bring some sort of justice to them as they continue to deal with the unbearable pain Albert’s untimely death has caused.”
All three men will be sentenced at the same court on a date yet to be set.
