Three men convicted following investigation into the murder of Karamjeet Singh Reel
A man has been convicted of murder after detectives’ extensive CCTV and phone analysis provided overwhelming evidence in court.
Following a trial at Wood Green Crown Court which concluded on Wednesday, 14 June, Wesley Angel, 33 of Clayponds Gardens, Brentford, was found guilty of murdering 31-year-old Karamjeet Singh Reel in Hounslow last June.
His brother Nathan Angel, 24 was found not guilty of murder; he had already pleaded guilty to manslaughter and conspiracy to rob.
Bobby Dunleavy, 26, of no fixed address had also previously pleaded guilty to manslaughter and conspiracy to rob.
Detective Chief Inspector Jim Shirley, who led the investigation, said, “This was a pre-planned and brutal attack on a man who was lured out of his flat by a group of men intent on causing serious harm in order to rob him.
“Karamjeet’s life was suddenly taken away, leaving his family and friends understandably devastated. Our thoughts are with them at this time.
“We are pleased the jury recognised the strength of evidence against Wesley Angel and we now expect all three men to be handed significant custodial sentences.”
On Saturday, 25 June 2022, Karamjeet – known as Kam – was found collapsed in the doorway of a pub on Staines Road, Hounslow.
Staff and customers provided first aid until the arrival of the London Ambulance Service and police but despite their best efforts, Singh died at the scene. A post-mortem examination later confirmed his cause of death as a stab wound to the heart.
Detectives immediately began an investigation and established that Singh lived just across the road from the pub. On visiting the building, they found a trail of blood starting in one of the corridors and leading out of the fire exit and onto the street.
Once entering his flat, they found £25,000 in cash and a large quantity of cocaine – it was clear that Singh had been a target by an individual or group who knew he was dealing drugs and intended to rob him.
CCTV enquiries showed two men with their faces covered entering the building at around 00:09hrs and leaving again 14 minutes later. The corridor itself was not covered by cameras but officers established that Singh had come out of his flat and been ferociously assaulted by those lying in wait.
Enquiries led police to identify the Angel brothers and they were arrested on Wednesday, 29 June. Wesley admitted their plan to rob Singh and accepted he had stabbed him during the struggle, but said they had only brought the knife to scare him rather than with the intention to use it.
Analysis of both mobile phones showed numerous calls had been made both immediately before and after the attack to a number linked to a man named Bobby Dunleavy, who was quickly arrested.
Officers established that Dunleavy was one of Singh’s customers and had shown the brothers where he lived. He also phoned the victim minutes before the murder on the pretence of meeting him for a drug deal, luring him out of the flat so he could be robbed.
Using CCTV and mobile phone data, officers were also able to show that prior to the attack, the three men had met in a nearby pub. Footage showed them in deep conversation and at one point, Dunleavy was captured feigning punches, mirroring the planned attack on Singh.
Following the stabbing, the brothers abandoned their car, dumped the knife and burned belongings they had taken from their victim.
Wesley was sentenced to 25 years in prison for murder, 8 years for conspiracy to rob and four months for possession of an offensive weapon to be served concurrently.
Nathan was sentenced to nine years in prison for manslaughter and eight years for conspiracy to rob to be served concurrently.
Dunleavy was sentenced to ten years in prison for manslaughter and ten years and six for conspiracy to rob to be served concurrently.
Singh’s mother, Jasbir Kaur Reel, said, “To the three defendants, you took away Karamjeet’s hope, his life, his dreams. You took away my hopes, my dreams of growing old seeing Karamjeet happy with a partner and children. Every bone in my body misses Karamjeet. We are now serving a life sentence without Karamjeet. No sentence for them will be enough.”
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