Teenager shot woman to death through front door

A teenager has been found guilty of murdering a mother who was shot in the head on her front doorstep as she tried to protect her two children from a gang fight.

Lianne Gordon, 42, was attacked at her home in Hackney, east London, on December 5, 2023, as she had just returned from a holiday in Jamaica, the Old Bailey heard.

Jurors heard he was the unintended victim of a gang feud between neighborhood rivals.

A 17-year-old youth had denied being the attacker but was found guilty of murdering Miss Gordon after a trial at the Old Bailey.

The jury, which deliberated for 21 hours, found him guilty of the attempted murder of a 17-year-old boy and a 21-year-old man who were shot in the street during the same incident.

The teenager was also found guilty of affray, possession of a firearm with intent to endanger life and possession of a bladed instrument, but was acquitted of threatening Ms Gordon’s son with a knife.

Co-defendant Elijah Seriki, 21, of Hackney, was acquitted of all charges against him on Wednesday.

At the time of the shooting, the young defendant was out on bail on attempted murder charges related to a separate incident last March.

On the evening of last December 5, Ms Gordon’s 21-year-old son Kaymound was in the shower and her 16-year-old daughter came out of her room when she heard what she thought were fireworks.

Even though the gunman was wearing a balaclava, he would later tell police he knew his mother’s killer.

He said: “My mum’s hand was on the doorknob and it looked like she was trying to close the door. I could see the tip of the gun through the open door. I saw you fall. I went to him.

“As soon as my mother took her last breath and I could still hear the gunshots, I opened the front door and started yelling at her and she looked right at me.

“He was wearing a ski mask or hood, but I could see his eyes and nose area enough to recognize him. He didn’t say anything. Everything happened in slow motion. We stood face to face for a few seconds, maybe five, before he ran away. We locked eyes, we knew it was him.”

While the two victims outside were being treated at the hospital, Ms. Gordon died at the scene from a single gunshot wound to the head.

Jurors heard the shooting was the result of a series of events.

Prosecutor Mark Fenhalls KC said the incidents arose from a dispute between two Hackney gangs: the Pembury Gang, with whom the teenagers were associated; and the A-Road Gang, with which Mr. Gordon was associated.

The defendants were alleged to have threatened Ms Gordon’s son with a large knife for smoking on her doorstep on October 1 last year, but they denied this.

Jurors were told that on December 2, 2023, the teenagers took part in a trip to rival territory where a machete and gun were fired four times.

Mr Gordon, who uses a wheelchair, denied being a member of the A-Road Gang but said the problems began with the murder of his friend Dotz in 2019.

Jurors were told that over the years both sides disrespected each other in music and on social media and there were revenge attacks.

The court heard the teenage defendant returned to Hackney even though his family had moved away to get him away from the gang.

Following the deadly attack, the teenager had made 65 internet searches on his computer to find Lianne Gordon.

Mr Fenhalls told jurors: “The only logical conclusion to be drawn from this activity on this computer is that (the teenager) had arrived at the house in the early evening and was searching to see what was being said about what he had done.”

The court heard rap lyrics referencing the shooting in January, in which Kaymound’s mother said he was “in a wig”, were seized from his cell.

The teenager had a number of previous convictions dating back to when he was 15.

These included a conviction for attempted murder for the incident at Hackney Central station on March 1 last year, the court heard.

Mr Fenhalls said the defendant was involved in the planning and passing on of information but was not personally involved in the violence.