Wood Green shooting: Police foil breakout of gang hitmen killing one

Men arrested by the Metropolitan Police after its officers shot and killed a man in north London were allegedly trying to free criminals Erun Izzet and Erwin Amoyaw-Gyamfi from Wood Green Crown Court. The pair were due to appear at the court for sentencing on 11 December for a carjacking and firearms offences.

A man was shot and killed by officers in an anti-gang operation in Bracknell Close in Wood Green at about 9.00am GMT. Two men, aged 30 and 19, were arrested at the road on suspicion of conspiracy to facilitate the escape of an individual from lawful custody. Two further men, aged 31 and 25, were arrested at Barratt Avenue on the same allegation.

The pair were due to be sentenced in court room three for carjacking and firearms offences. They were arrested on October 13 after crashing a stolen Honda motorbike in Stamford Hill, north London. They were carrying a sub machine gun and a pistol and according to judge Nicholas Browne QC were "clearly" on their way to carry out a shooting.

Junior Harry, 34, a construction worker working on a roof in a nearby street told IBTimes UK he heard what he thought was a gang fight.

"I heard a lot of arguing and shouting, thought it was a gang fight at first, then i realised it was a bit more formal than that, if you want to put it that way," he said. "I thought it was a raid on a house, then a heard a big bang, but it sounded muffled like it was inside a car. A few seconds after the shot, I ran down the stairs and round the corner and the police were trying to resuscitate him.

"I asked the police was he armed and they said yes, so I asked where's the guy's gun, because this was literally in the space of a few seconds after I heard the shot and there no way they could have taken the guy's gun.* I definitely only heard the one shot."

An owner of a nearby business blamed the shooting and alleged breakout attempt on foreign gangs. "I got here just as it started and heard all the sirens and I just thought that's nothing new round here. A little while later I heard the helicopter flying so that's when I thought this must be something gang related.

"There always something going on. First you had the Yardies, then the Triads and now Bulgarians have moved in. It's shame because Wood Green is a lovely area but there's always something going on. I had four men rob the bookies across the road with shotguns a while back, I've just got to try and ignore it."

Izzet and Amoyaw-Gyamfi's sentencing went ahead, with both men jailed for 14 years each. "I completely ignore and put out of my mind the serious incident outside the court area, not far from where I am", Judge Nicholas Browne QC said. There was a heavy police presence both inside and outside of the courtroom.