Daylight gun attack was drug related, court told

THE dangerous and murky world of drug deals sparked a near-fatal shooting that was witnessed by a group of terrified schoolchildren, a jury heard this week.

Victim Richard Bellantine described at the Old Bailey how he was fired on at close range by Desmond Meade when they clashed near the gates of Thomas Fairchild Primary in Napier Grove, Hoxton.

Mr Bellantine, 44, told the court: “I ended up in a pretty bad state in hospital.”

He claimed he had seen “something” in Mr Meade’s hand seconds before being shot in the chest.

Doctors performed  surgery in the street to save Mr Bellantine’s life.

Mr Bellantine, from Islington, Mr Meade, 25, of Crondall Court, Hoxton, and his friend Russell Stanley, 26, had known each other for years through drug deals, said prosecutor Miss Riel Karmy-Jones.

Mr Meade, alleged to be a member of the notorious London Fields gang, had fallen out with the victim over money, she said.

He and Stanley, from East Ham – who is alleged to have been at the scene of the shooting – deny attempted murder and alternatively causing grievous bodily harm. 

They also deny having a firearm with intent to endanger life.

The trial continues.
DAVID ST GEORGE