Acquittal in Murder Trial of Drug Dealer

On 5th August the trial (which lasted almost two months) of Clive Mundoma came to an end with his acquittal for murder.

The case involved a drugs deal which went wrong. The supplier was stabbed to death after he provided a smaller quantity of drugs than expected. The three defendants were themselves drug dealers. Mundoma admitted robbing the deceased who made a dying declaration that he, Mundoma was the assailant. The deceased’s blood was found on his jeans. He lied to the Police and to the Court in his defence statement having provided a no comment interview.

The two co-defendants accused him of being the murderer. Mobile phone data implicated him as the organiser of the deal. The Prosecution alleged a pre planned robbery. One defendant was found to have trawled the internet, on the day of the murder, for sites describing knife fighting. The day after the murder he was seeking information about defences to murder, sentences for first time murderers and whether one might be charged with murder should there be no witnesses to the event. He then sought information about ferries to Portugal.

Whilst it might at first blush be thought that this was a case worthy of the eminent Sir Edward Marshall Hall or the (less eminent ) Massingbird of Blackadder fame, it should be noted that the defendant who was convicted of murder, had bad character which demonstrated not only a predilection for carrying knives but also a tendency suddenly and unexpectedly to use knives. Mundoma’s defence statement was fabricated in order to provide a defence for that defendant. The blood got onto Mundoma’s jeans during the course of the robbery. The jury accepted that it may at least be the case that the robbery was not planned, that the convicted defendant must have produced the knife during the course of the robbery and unknown to the other defendants so that Rahman joint enterprise did not apply.

Richard Barraclough QC led Aisha Khan for the defence of Mundoma. They were instructed by Sarah Meechan of Yasmin and Shaid Solicitors.