UK court fixes June 3 for trial of Nigerian teenager’s killer

The Central Criminal Court of England and Wales, commonly known as the Old Bailey, has scheduled June 3 for the trial of a Spanish-Brazilian man, Marcus Monzo, arrested for the alleged murder of a 14-year-old Nigerian boy, Daniel Anjorin, in the United Kingdom.

Monzo, who described himself as a “mystic musician,” was arraigned in connection with Anjorin’s death, which occurred after a knife attack in Hainault, North-East London, on April 30, 2024.

The 37-year-old allegedly murdered the Nigerian boy after slashing him in the chest and neck, with two Japanese swords on his way to school.

According to the British media, including Daily Mail UK, Monzo was also accused of assaulting four other people in a 20-minute knife attack.

Aside from the denial of the murder of the boy, Monzo also pleaded not guilty to the attempted murders of Donato Iwule, Sindy Arias, Henry Polania, and Yasmin Mechem-Whitfield as well as wounding a police inspector, Moloy Campbell, with intent.

Monzo, who appeared before the court on Friday evening, denied eight of the 10 charges against him but admitted two counts of having an offensive weapon – a katana sword and a tanto katana sword.

The Spanish-Brazilian defendant also denied aggravated burglary and possession of a bladed article relating to a kitchen knife.

Earlier, Westminster Magistrates Court heard how Monzo allegedly crashed a van into a fence in Laing Close, hitting a pedestrian, Iwule, on April 30 last year.

He was seen brandishing a sword and slashing pedestrians at the scene, in which the Nigerian teenager was a victim.

Anjorin was rushed to the hospital but succumbed to the knife injuries after a while.