A man who fled to Pakistan has been convicted of the murder of a 27-year-old father, after police used DNA from a cigarette butt found at the scene to identify him. Ali Abdul Basit, 19, was found guilty at the Old Bailey on Friday for his role in the killing of Michael Patrick Afonso Peixoto. The Metropolitan Police spent two years tracking Basit following the attack.
Mr Peixoto was fatally assaulted in Mayfield Crescent, Thornton Heath, south London, on December 19, 2023. According to a Met Police statement released on Saturday, a group of men in a white BMW were observed waiting in the road when Mr Peixoto arrived with a friend in a Vauxhall Grandland on the night of the killing.
When Mr Peixoto climbed out of the car, he was stabbed multiple times, including once in the chest, as he attempted to get back into the vehicle.
The victim’s friend was threatened with a knife and forced out of the car, before it was stolen and later found abandoned nearby.
The police said DNA found on cigarette butts discovered at the scene matched that of three men who were later convicted for their part in the incident in December 2024.
Basit, of Leicester Avenue, Mitcham, south London, fled to Pakistan after he was spotted at the scene of the robbery before Mr Peixoto’s murder, police said.
Police compiled evidence, including mobile phone data, which linked Basit to the three convicted men, and he was arrested after he returned to the UK in May last year.
The DNA on an asthma inhaler found at Basit’s house during a police search matched the DNA found on a cigarette butt at the scene.
Detective Inspector Martin Thorpe, who led the investigation, said: “Basit returned to the UK after the conviction of three other men in connection with Michael’s death, possibly on the false pretence that he has got away with his actions.
“What Basit didn’t know is that our officers had compiled an extensive amount of evidence, including phone data, which linked him to the other three convicted men at the time of the assault.
“After he was arrested, our officers were able to get his DNA from an asthma inhaler at his house, which matched DNA found on a cigarette butt at the scene.”
Zak Baako, 30, of no fixed address, was found guilty of Mr Peixoto’s murder on December 20 2024 and was later sentenced to a minimum of 28 years in prison.
John Budal, 20, of Ena Road, Thornton Heath, was found guilty of manslaughter and robbery and Omari Peat, 23, of Southampton Gardens, Mitcham, south London, was found guilty of robbery.
Basit was convicted of manslaughter and robbery and will be sentenced at the Old Bailey on May 22.
