A fashion entrepreneur mowed down a pedestrian outside a court after he had a gun pointed at him by a gang member, the Old Bailey heard.
asserted
Bailey → mow → member
Shakaine Dwyer, 29, was driving to court for a motoring offences hearing when he mounted the pavement in his £60,000 Mercedes and hit Ruben Nunes, 34, at 54mph.
asserted
he → drive → mph
Mr Nunes suffered 'catastrophic injuries' outside Willesden Magistrates' Court on December 3 last year and was pronounced dead at the scene.
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Nunes → suffer → scene
Dwyer, the co-founder of Jugg Clothing, denies murder while Gregory Ejiofor, 31, denies possession of a firearm with intent to cause fear of violence to Dwyer.
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Ejiofor → deny → Dwyer
Mukul Chawla, KC, prosecuting, told jurors: 'This case is about the utterly needless death of a young man, Ruben Nunes aged 34, who was killed while a pedestrian on a pavement when he was struck by a car travelling at high speed.'
Only moments before the crash, Dwyer had been 'G checked' by Ejiofor, who approached him to ask if he was a member of a rival gang, the court heard.
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court → prosecute → gang
The prosecutor said: 'Mr Dwyer was due to attend Willesden Magistrates' Court for failing to provide information relating to a driving matter.
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Dwyer → say → matter
At approximately 12:30pm, Mr Dwyer drove a black Mercedes onto Chapel Close, a road that runs to the side of Willesden Magistrates' Court.
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that → drive → Court
Ruben Nunes, 34, was hit by a Mercedes and suffered 'catastrophic injuries' outside Willesden Magistrates' Court on 3 December last year
Shakaine Dwyer, 29, was driving to court for a motoring offences hearing when mounted the pavement in his £60,000 Mercedes and hit Ruben Nunes, 34 at 54mph
'
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Dwyer → hit → mph
Mr Dwyer's Mercedes was approached by Mr Ejiofor.
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Mercedes → approach → Ejiofor
Mr Ejiofor had been at court that morning to support a friend who was on trial.
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who → support → trial
That friend was the brother of the man who was killed.
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who → kill → man
The men were seen exchanging words with Mr Ejiofor asking Mr Dwyer the question "Willesden or Kingsbury?" to Mr Dwyer.
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Ejiofor → see → Dwyer
Mr Dwyer was heard replying "Kingsbury.
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Dwyer → hear → Kingsbury
Mr Ejiofor appeared agitated at this response.
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Ejiofor → appear → response
The witnesses describe seeing Mr Ejiofor reach into his waistband area and Mr Orange saw him handle a black, metallic object.
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him → describe → object
It is the prosecution case that this was a firearm and that Mr Ejiofor had been "G checking", or "gangster checking", Mr Dwyer to see whether he was a member of a rival gang.
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he → check → gang
Mr Dwyer's car pulled away at considerable speed and the events that followed are captured on CCTV.'
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that → pull → CCTV
Footage shows the Mercedes-Benz E200 AMG Line hitting a dead end as Ejiofor continued the pursuit on foot and at one point Dwyer 'collided with a fence' when he tried to turn his car around.
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he → show → car
Dwyer was driving at up to 54mph on the narrow cul-de-sac as he 'mounted the pavement', just as Mr Nunes was seen walking back to his car.
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Nunes → drive → car
Mr Chawla told jurors: 'At that speed, you may think that a crash was utterly predictable and inevitable.'
uncertain
crash → tell → speed
Telematics from the Mercedes shows that while Dwyer had 'braked slightly' before the collision, he had 'floored the accelerator' immediately after and as he approached the pedestrian.
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he → show → pedestrian
The prosecutor said: 'There was no concerted braking applied by Mr Dwyer to try to stop even though, at the speed he was travelling, any attempt to stop would have been impossible.
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attempt → say → speed
The impact caused Mr Nunes to be thrown in the air and, as he came down, he was struck again by the Mercedes which, because of the speed at which it was travelling, crashed into a parked car on the other side of the road.'
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it → cause → road
Mr Nunes landed on the opposite pavement and was pronounced dead shortly afterwards.
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Nunes → land → pavement
'Almost the first thing that he did, having killed Mr Nunes, was to get a friend of his to book a one way flight for him to Dubai from Heathrow which was due to leave that evening,' said Mr Chawla.
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Chawla → do → Heathrow
'In fact, he did not take that flight but, having realised that the police were seeking to find him, arranged for his solicitor to call the police and handed himself in to the police station the following day.
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solicitor → take → station
Mr Chawla added that Dwyer was an 'entrepreneur and co-founder' of a well-known fashion brand called Jugg Clothing.
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Dwyer → add → brand
'At the time of the incident, he was wearing valuable jewellery and had approximately £2,000 of clothing stock in the vehicle because of a promotional engagement he was attending immediately after the court hearing.
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he → wear → hearing
In his prepared statement Dwyer denied involvement in gangs and rejected the idea 'he was being "G checked" or was "G checking" anyone'.
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he → prepare → anyone
Dwyer claimed after finding parking a man approached his car and asked 'Are you that Jugg guy' and then moved towards his waistband.
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you → claim → waistband
He feared he was about to be robbed or harmed and drove off in a panic but turned into a dead end street.
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he → fear → street
Dwyer said as he approached the top of the road, he was aware of a 'grey car obstructing the road with two men standing near that car.
'
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men → say → car
He said that he tried to brake and slow down in order to avoid a collision but that this was not successful and that, despite his efforts he struck a pedestrian.
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he → say → pedestrian
'The collision was not deliberate, that he had no intention to harm or endanger anyone.
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he → have → anyone
He said that this was a sudden, unexpected event while he was attempting to escape what he genuinely perceived as a threat.'
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he → say → threat
He said he had never met Mr Ejiofor before and knew Mr Nunes by the nickname 'Switch' in north-west London.
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he → say → London
In a tribute shared after his death, Mr Nunes's loved ones described him as 'a family man - a son, a brother, an uncle, a father and a partner'.
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ones → share → man
They said: 'He was true to his friends and cherished the people around him.
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He → say → him
He loved football and was a big Liverpool fan.
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He → love → football
'Ruben had a light within him - he brightened the lives of everyone he touched.
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he → have → everyone
…and 4 more, not listed.
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