A high-level drug dealer and one of the UK’s most wanted fugitives, Nana Oppong, was captured while trying to enter Morocco hidden in the back of a lorry.
Sky News reports that the 43-year-old, also known as “Enz,” has been extradited back to the UK and now faces a life sentence for orchestrating the execution of Robert Powell outside a party in Essex.
Robert Powell, 50, who managed rapper Dutchavelli, was shot eight times outside Hills House in Roydon in the early hours of April 13, 2020.
The attack, executed with a 9mm Luger semi-automatic pistol, left Powell with 15 bullet wounds, some caused by the same bullet re-entering his body, including one that dislodged a gold grill from his mouth.
Despite bystanders’ efforts to save him, Powell succumbed to his injuries the following day in the hospital.
Prosecutors revealed that Mr Oppong orchestrated the execution due to a personal grievance with Powell.
The prosecution detailed how Mr Oppong led a team of accomplices, including drivers and spotters, to carry out the murder.
Following the shooting, Mr Oppong fled the country, declaring in messages from abroad, “Bro, don’t think I’m coming back” and “I ain’t doing no time, bro.”
The National Crime Agency named Mr Oppong one of the UK’s most wanted fugitives. He was eventually caught using a Maltese passport in Morocco.
Prosecutor Justin Rouse KC described Oppong as the “instigator, protagonist, and principal organizer” of the killing.
Oppong reportedly arrived at the scene in a Ford Kuga with cloned plates, where a gunman, possibly Oppong or another individual from the vehicle, executed Powell.
Oppong was tried at London’s Woolwich Crown Court and found guilty of murder, possessing a firearm with intent to endanger life, causing grievous bodily harm, and possession of a prohibited weapon.
His co-defendant, Israar Shah, 39, from Kelvedon Hatch, Essex, was also convicted of murder and firearm possession.
Shah fled to Spain post-murder but was extradited to face trial alongside Oppong.
The court learned that other participants in the murder, including Temitope Adeyinka, known as ‘Limo,’ remain at large.
Despite denying involvement, Shah admitted to being at the scene in his Toyota Prius with Adeyinka but claimed no active role in the murder.
Oppong, however, denied being present at the scene altogether.
Oppong’s criminal history includes previous charges and acquittals for multiple murders.
He was cleared of murdering Eugene Brown and Patrick Ford outside a birthday party in Forest Gate, London, in 2010 after juries failed to reach verdicts.
He did, however, receive a two-year sentence for perverting the course of justice after CCTV footage implicated him.
In 2015, he was acquitted of stabbing Ashley Latty to death but was sentenced to four years for causing grievous bodily harm with intent.