Two men get life prison sentences over drive-by shooting of mother-of-two outside wake

Michelle Sadio, a 44-year-old legal administrator and mother of two, was killed in a drive-by shooting outside River of Life Pentecostal Church in Willesden, north London, on December 14, 2024. Shots were fired into a crowd of mourners gathered outside a wake, including children. Sadio died at the scene. Kenneth Amoah, a Transport for London contractor, was hit in the back and left paralysed below the waist, and Kadeem Francis was shot in the foot. Perry Allen-Thomas and Amir Salem were convicted of murder and attempted murder. They received life sentences, with Allen-Thomas given a minimum term of 38 years and Salem 26 years. The intended target was a rapper, Trapstar Toxic, who was at the event. The Kia used was stolen and driven with false number plates, and the weapon had been used previously.

"Michelle Sadio, 44, was gunned down outside the River of Life Pentecostal Church in Willesden, north London, on December 14 2024. Following an Old Bailey trial, Perry Allen-Thomas, 27, and Amir Salem, 20, were found guilty of murder and two counts of attempted murder. They have been jailed for life with Allen-Thomas handed a minimum term of 38 years and Salem 26 years. Jean-Marie Sadio described his wife, who he worked with at the same legal firm, as a "pillar"."

"Ms Sadio had been among around 100 mourners, including children as young as five, to attend the wake for Dianne Boatong, 80. At around 9pm, guests were outside on the pavement when a black Kia pulled up and shots were fired into the crowd. Ms Sadio, a legal administrator, was hit and died at the scene. Transport for London contractor Kenneth Amoah, 39, was hit in the back and paralysed below the waist, and self-employed Kadeem Francis, 32, was shot in the foot."

"The intended target was said to have been a rapper called Trapstar Toxic, real name Adetokunbo Ajibola, 33, who was at the event. Allen-Thomas, from Wembley, north London, was said to have helped organise the shooting but ensured he was elsewhere at the time. The Kia used in the attack had been stolen and was being driven with false number plates. Salem, from Wembley, had bought some of the petrol used to set the vehicle on fire after the shooting, jurors heard."

"On the night of the shooting, Salem was in contact with the Kia occupants and reported back to Allen-Thomas, jurors were told. At least four shots were fired, although it was not known who in the Kia pulled the trigger. The prosecution had alleged two of the men in the Kia had fled the country after the incident. The weapon used in the shooting had been used twice before in the previous few months, and was said to be a "qu"

Read at Irish Independent