Credit: CPS
The man shot dead by police in south London two years ago was revealed to be a violent, armed gangster who shot his rival in a crowded nightclub just days before he was killed.
Despite his family claiming convicted criminal Chris Kaba was trying to turn his life around, the 24-year-old remained a key player in one of London’s most feared and dangerous gangs.
In the early hours of August 30, 2022 – just six days before he died – Kaba and three of his gang mates sneaked a gun into a Notting Hill Carnival after-party at the Oval Space nightclub in Cambridge Heath, Hackney.
After spotting his rival on the crowded dance floor, Kaba coolly raised his gun and fired, hitting his 23-year-old target in the leg.
The scary moments were captured on security cameras taken from inside the club.
Miraculously, no one was injured, but panicked partygoers were sent running for their lives.
But Kaba was not done and as his injured target tried to escape, he chased him from the nightclub to the street and shot him again while he was lying on the ground.
Credit: CPS
He and other gang members then left the scene in two cars; one of which was the Audi he was driving when he was shot dead by police the following Sunday evening.
The victim was taken to the Royal London Hospital in Whitechapel, where he was placed under armed guard and treated for gunshot wounds to both legs.
He refused to co-operate with police and was later discharged from hospital against medical advice.
In February this year, three men, Shemiah Bell, Marcus Pottinger and Connell Bamgboye, were convicted for their roles in the attack.
At the hearing, prosecutors said Kaba would have been tried for attempted murder if he were alive.
However, far from attracting attention after the incident, Kaba’s armed activities continued the following week.
On Saturday 4 September, just 24 hours before he was shot dead by police, Kaba and his gang are suspected of carrying out a shooting outside a primary school in Brixton.
Citizens reported that they saw three masked and hooded men opening fire with a shotgun at a white Mercedes with two people inside.
The suspects were then seen changing their clothes and getting into two getaway cars; one of which was the Audi Q8 Kaba was driving when he was shot.
While the identity of the attacker was never confirmed, following Kaba’s death, his clothes were examined and gunpowder residue was found on his arm. A ski mask was also recovered from the scene.
Audi, which is not officially registered with Kaba, was also linked to a shooting in Bromley in May 2022, nearly five months ago.
In this incident, two people were injured by bullets as a result of the fire opened by unidentified attackers.
Kaba’s criminal record dated back to the age of 13, but by his late teens he had transitioned from minor crimes to serious violence and was convicted of stabbings and causing grievous bodily harm.
In 2017, while still a teenager, he was charged with possessing a firearm with intent to create fear of violence following a shooting in Canning Town, east London.
He appeared at Snaresbrook Crown Court in January 2019, where he was found guilty of possessing an imitation firearm.
Kaba was sentenced to four years in the Young Offenders Institute but was released on license in 2020.
Shortly after his release, he was sent back to prison after a knife was found in his car when he was stopped by the police for driving without insurance.
He was detained for an additional five months because the crimes were committed while he was still on licence.
Kaba was a pregnant father at the time of his death, but court records show that in April 2022 he was served with a 28-day domestic violence protective order against the mother of his unborn child.
The order banned her from contacting him on social media or entering the street where he lived.
His family claimed that after his spell in prison he worked hard to make a fresh start with aspirations of becoming an architect.
But in reality Kaba was a leading figure in Brixton’s Hill’s notorious 67 gang, an organized crime network and drill rap collective.
About 50 gang members controlled the lucrative drug trade in the area, using firearms and knives to terrorize rivals and protect their businesses and territory.
In 2019, one in 67 members was found guilty of gang murder, and there were also numerous stabbings and shootings linked to members.
In 2021, an employee of Kaba was stabbed to death, and in May 2022, two people were shot by 67 people during a robbery.
The 67 gang was also active in the Drill Rap scene and was even nominated as Best Newcomer Artist at the 2016 Music of Black Origin awards.
Kaba, who goes by the name Itch, appeared in many videos prepared by the team.
Credit: Independent Office for Police Conduct
Far from focusing on music, the 67 were the most damaging criminal gang in London, according to the Metropolitan Police.
In 2019, the police foiled a drug trafficking operation in the district, and as a result, 16 people, 67 of whom were important figures, were sentenced to a total of 61 years in prison.
At the time of his death, Kaba was the subject of an interim gang injunction aimed at preventing his involvement in organized criminal activity.
Credit: Independent Police Conduct Office
The Metropolitan Police were about to apply to make the measure permanent and a hearing was scheduled for ten days after he was shot dead.
Before Martyn Blake, the officer who shot Kaba, was tried, police said they had received intelligence from 67 people that there was a credible threat to his life.
A senior officer’s assessment sent to the court said: “In nearly 30 years of service, I have never been more concerned about an officer’s welfare, or the risk of harm to himself and his family, than in this case.
He continued: “There is specific intelligence that the officer’s life is at risk due to the death of Mr Kaba and that members of the 67 gang are actively searching for or locating him.”