Girl, 9, shot in Hackney drive-by shooting was having dinner with family | UK News
A nine-year-old girl who was having dinner with her family is in critical condition after being shot in a Hackney Turkish restaurant yesterday evening.
Three other men, aged 26, 37 and 42, remain in hospital for treatment, with one facing life-changing injuries after being shot in Evin Restaurant on the busy high street in Dalston, Hackney.
Police were called at about 9.20pm to Kingsland High Street after reports of multiple gunshots fired.
The little girl who was shot is not thought to have known the other men injured in the shooting.
Now, two crime scenes have been put in place, after the motorbike thought to be used in the shooting was found abandoned on nearby Colvestone Crescent and was confirmed to have been stolen.
Chief Superintendent James Conway of the Met Police said: ‘Our thoughts are with her family and they are being supported by specialist officers.’
Khadiga, who has lived in Dalston since she was four-years-old, heard shots just as she was about to have dinner at her aunt’s house.
The suspected shooter, allegedly a man on a motorbike, stuffed the gun into a bag before taking off, she told Metro.co.uk.
She said: ‘After the fifth shot, I opened the window and saw him shooting. He had a white helmet on with a white motorbike, and was wearing gloves. He drove off quickly. I saw the girl, she was put inside the ambulance.’
Khadiga described Dalston as ‘chaotic,’ but she said she has never seen ‘a drive-by shooting before.’
‘It was hell, hell for everyone affected, especially in this area. It was really dramatic. Everyone is affected by it. When one of us is affected, we all are.’ she added.
Gunshots can be heard fired on CCT footage obtained by The Sun before the sound of a motorbike speeding away.
An eyewitness, who was at the Evin restaurant at the time, told Hackney Gazette the high street was ‘busier than usual’ before shots were fired.
He said: ‘There was a big group having dinner in the rear. I couldn’t get my usual table so got one close to the front window.
‘The big group paid up and left and shortly afterwards that’s when the loud bangs – which were obviously gunshots – happened.’
Everyone dived onto the floor and under the tables in the ‘chaos’ after the incident, the eyewitness said.
He said that he used his coat to stop the bleeding at a leg wound after seeing someone was injured, before emergency services arrived ten minutes later.
A coffee shop worker nearby, who wished to remain anonymous for fear the incident was gang-related, told Metro.co.uk: ‘Most of the shops were shut down at the time it happened.’
The coffee shop worker said something needs to be done fast about ‘what’s happening in London.’
Jay, who lives nearby the restaurant, said he heard five shots being fired around 9.10pm and he ‘ran up the street’ to see what had happened.
He told Metro.co.uk he saw ‘a guy on the floor outside Evin’ before the street was cordoned off in just 10 minutes.
An eyewitness across the road told him ‘a guy on a bike showed up and then went off.’
Officers, including specialist firearms officers, attended along with the London Ambulance Service and an air ambulance trauma team in a car.
Three adults and a child were found with gunshot injuries at the scene and they were rushed to a hospital in east London.
No arrests have been made yet, but police have appealed for any witnesses with information to come forward.
With the investigation at an early stage, police were ‘keeping an open mind’ over the motive of the attack, Ch Supt Conway said.
He asked those on Kingsland High Street at the time of the attack with information or footage to share it with the force.
The owner of nearby Dalston Jazz Bar said terrified bystanders fled the scene ‘screaming’ as gunshots rang out.
He told The Sun: ‘They shut everywhere down. It was a guy on a motorbike doing the shooting.
‘Police saw a helmet and started crowding around it because they thought it might be his.’
Deputy Assistant Commissioner Matt Ward said that ‘Londoners will be shocked’ by the incident.
He added: ‘Our thoughts go to all those affected.
‘Fast moving enquiries are under way and we will update as soon as we can. If anyone has any information, please contact us.’
Ambulance crews, advanced paramedics, incident response officers and tactical response unit attended along with a trauma team from the London Air Ambulance, a spokesperson for the London Ambulance Service said.
‘We treated three adults and one child at the scene before taking them all to a major trauma centre,’ they said.
Anyone with information that can help police should call 101 or post @MetCC reference CAD 8082/29May. To remain anonymous call Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.
A section of Kingsland Road A10 remained closed on Thursday morning between Abbot Street and Shacklewell Lane.
The entire junction has been shut down while they investigate, an officer told Metro.co.uk, but is expected to reopen by Friday.