A man has been found guilty over the shooting of a nine-year-old girl and three men outside a London restaurant in a long-running gang feud.
Javon Riley, 33, denied three charges of attempted murder and causing grievous bodily harm with intent to the girl.
The man from Tottenham was found guilty at the Old Bailey on Monday after a trial.
The young victim was eating dinner with her family when the rider of a Ducati Monster motorbike fired six shots outside Evin restaurant on Kingsland High Street in Dalston, east London, on 29 May 2024.
A bullet lodged in the girl’s brain, and three men sitting at another table were wounded in the thigh, leg and backbone, the Old Bailey heard during the trial.
The nine-year-old, who lives with the bullet still in her brain and suffers long-lasting physical and mental effects from the shooting, cannot be named because of her age.
The prosecution said the shooting was a “planned assassination” amid a dispute between rival gangs, the Tottenham Turks and the Hackney Turks, also known as the “Bombacilars”.
The men seated outside the restaurant – Mustafa Kiziltan, Kenan Aydogdu and Nasser Ali – had affiliations towards the Hackney Turks, and the ones who had ordered the shooting were from the Tottenham Turks, it was claimed.
Metropolitan Police said in a statement that Riley scoped the area over several days in the lead-up to the shooting.
He sat at a bar opposite the restaurant, studying the flow of traffic on the busy road, while calculating how a gunman could best carry out the shooting, the force said.
On the evening of the shooting, he drove to the scene in a stolen Nissan Juke and went past the restaurant multiple times to make sure that the three men targeted were there.
Police said he was instrumental in ensuring the shooter evaded arrest after the shooting.
The gunman has never been found, nor has the weapon he used.
Speaking at court following the verdict, detective inspector Ben Dalloway, who led the investigation, said: “Javon Riley’s actions traumatically altered the trajectory of a little girl’s life. While this outcome serves as a sliver of justice, the dangerous individual responsible for pulling the trigger remains on our streets.
“Those who ordered this shooting are a highly sophisticated criminal organisation. We understand that people may be worried about talking to us because of this, but it is imperative we hear from anyone who can assist this investigation.
“Justice must be secured for this little girl and her family.”
Detectives are now offering a financial reward of up to £15,000 for information that leads to the identification, arrest, and prosecution of the gunman.
The mother of the nine-year-old added: “In a single moment, the future we had imagined for our daughter was torn away. She was once an energetic, adventurous child – everything that celebrated movement, energy, and life.
“Now, weakness on her left side means she can only watch from the sidelines, living with a titanium plate in her skull and a bullet still in her brain.
“As parents, we are shattered – emotionally, physically, mentally, and financially. Each day brings new challenges, from her slower growth on one side to the emotional and mental scars that cannot be seen.
“The world we once believed was safe for our child now feels frightening and uncertain. This was not just an accident – even if our daughter was not the intended target, those responsible were still attempting to take lives. It is brutal and inhumane.
“We live with this pain every day, knowing nothing will ever be the same for our family.”
The Old Bailey jury deliberated for six hours and three minutes to convict Riley by a majority of 10 to two.
Judge Mark Lucraft KC remanded Riley into custody to be sentenced on 12 September.
He told him to expect a lengthy prison sentence, saying: “You have clearly taken part in a shooting which has led to four people being injured, one of them particularly seriously.”
