Boxer Dillian Whyte has paid tribute to his promoter’s son after he was shot dead in an incident that also saw a Deliveroo driver killed.
The Metropolitan Police revealed that a car chase in Brixton, south London on Sunday ended when one of the vehicles collided with a moped, killing the driver.
After the crash, a man got out of one of the cars and fled, before he was fatally shot by a gunman from the second vehicle.
Boxing promoter Dean Whyte shared a photograph of the shooting victim, a drill rapper known as Perm, alongside the tribute: “RIP my boy. Daddy loves you. Life has changed forever.”
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Heavyweight boxer Whyte reshared the post with heartbroken emojis.
The Metropolitan Police revealed that a moped driver killed in the shooting incident on Sunday evening was not the intended target of the attack, adding that both victims of the incident were in their twenties.
“At this stage, there is nothing to indicate he was the intended target,” chief superintendent Colin Wingrove told reporters on Monday. “Tragically we believe he was out riding his moped when he got caught in this violent incident,”
The gunman fled the scene after the attack and is still being pursued by officers.
A Deliveroo driver working near the scene said the moped rider had been making his last delivery of the day when he died. He has been named locally as 21-year-old Brazilian Guilherme Messias Da Silva.
A tribute to him posted online in Portuguese, said: “He lost his life working during a gunfight between gangs in Brixton, he was fatally hit by the thieves’ car.”
Paulo Silva described him as a “good boy” and “young” and said he had been planning to go to Brazil in December.
He had been in the UK for two years and is understood to have died from his injuries after being hit by one of the cars as it careered out of control during the shooting.
Another Deliveroo rider described Mr Da Silva as “a good man who had become an innocent victim”.
A further tribute by a close friend said: “Yet another asphalt warrior, humble boy, he lost his life working during a gunfight between gangs in Brixton, he was fatally hit by the thieves’ car.
“This first-world country that many outsiders see is not just a bed of roses. This here is a daily struggle away from the family, exposed to daily dangers. God comfort the family and friends. God welcome you with open arms boy.”
The identity of the two victims has not yet been formally revealed but police are “confident” of who they are and have informed their families who are being supported by specialist officers.
Residents reported hearing 12 gunshots with one saying she had seen two cars chasing each other.
White forensic tents had been put up at the scene on Monday, where debris could be seen strewn across the road.
There were two crashed vehicles – a silver car, which had lost one of its tyres, and a moped.
A 322 bus was left parked within the police cordon.
The latest violence means four people have been killed in two shootings in five days in the capital, after a separate incident in Ilford, east London on Tuesday that left two men dead and a third injured.
Haani Samuels, a 30-year-old electrician, who has lived in the area with his girlfriend for six months, said he initially thought the noise was fireworks.
He said: “My girlfriend said, ‘Oh, is that gunshots?’ And I initially thought, well, obviously not. But then it was followed by a big crash.”
Mr Samuels added: “I kind of came out and saw that there was shells from a bullet on the floor. We thought, ‘Bloody hell.’
“We saw the ambulance delivering CPR on someone for quite a while, my girlfriend was quite upset. It's not something you want to see anywhere, but especially on your doorstep.”
Mr Wingrove said he was “shocked and saddened” by the incident.
“Our thoughts are with the families and friends of the two young men who have tragically lost their lives. This incident will cause a great deal of concern throughout the local community and across London,” he said.
“We are supporting specialist crime detectives, who are working at pace to confirm the specific sequence of events and identify and arrest those responsible.”
Local MP Helen Hayes tweeted: “I’ve been to the scene of the appalling incident on Railton (Road).
“My thoughts are with the loved ones of those who died
“A respite centre is open at Lambeth Town Hall for residents unable to return home & Dexter’s Adventure Playground is open for anyone who needs support today.”
