Gangster guilty after rapper Craig Small killed in Wembley

Craig Small, 32, was shot in Harrow Road in Monks Park, Wembley, on July 5, 2019, and died later in hospital.

The rapper, who went by the nickname 'Smallz', was a gang member and musician who had featured in a music video called Bizzy.

Also, targeted that evening was Serge Mukendi, also known as “Big French”, another musician who appeared in the same video.

Following an Old Bailey retrial today (January 19), Courtney Ellis was found guilty of the murder and attempted murder of the two.

Ellis was also convicted of perverting the course of justice alongside Christopher Kyei, from Radlett, Hertfordshire.

Craig Small (Image: Met Police)

The defendants were said to be associated with a gang that operated in north west London.

Prosecutor Anthony Orchard QC had told jurors the offences were not a "spontaneous" street argument, but were carefully planned against a background of gang rivalry that boiled over in summer 2019.

He described how Mr Small was standing outside the restaurant that evening when a gunman in dark clothes and a face mask ran towards him.

Mr Orchard said: “The man fired the handgun once at Craig Small’s face.

“The shot was fired from less than a metre away. The bullet struck Craig Small on the right cheek.

“Craig Small fell to the ground. The gunman stepped away from the victim, before moving nearer and discharging a second shot.”

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That bullet missed and hit the pavement, sending a fragment into Mr Small’s left eye, the court heard.

The gunman ran off and got into a Mini with a cloned registration plate. Seven minutes later he ran towards a white Mercedes with Mr Mukendi inside.

He appeared to shoot at the front windscreen but the gun “misfired” and no bullet was discharged.

Mr Small was rushed to St Mary’s Hospital in Paddington, where he died an hour after being shot.

The gunman, who has not been named by police, is still at large, Mr Orchard said.

Craig Small was shot near this part of Harrow Road (Image: Street View)

Ellis, 38, from Brentford, west London, was “almost certainly” the driver of the Mini and helped to dispose of the car, jurors were told.

The other defendant, Kyei, 37, helped dispose of the Mini, it was alleged.

The defendants denied the charges against them, saying they were not involved in the murder but declining to name those who were.

Judge Philip Katz KC adjourned sentencing until a date to be fixed.

Following an earlier trial in 2022, Aaron Youngsam, 32, from Willesden, was cleared of murder and attempted murder. Horraine Nicholas, 34, of Downs Road, Luton, was acquitted of perverting the course of justice.

Some reporting from PA.