Daniel Anjorin's parents talk of their loss after killer jailed
The heartbroken family of murdered schoolboy Daniel Anjorin have spoken after his killer was ordered to serve at least 38 years in prison.Marcus Monzo fatally wounded the 14-year-old with a samurai sword after he left his home in Hainault, east London, on 30 April last year.Passing sentence at the Old Bailey, Judge Mr Justice Bennathan said Monzo inflicted an "unsurvivable wound".Outside court Daniel's mother, Grace Anjorin, was joined by his father, Dr Ebenezer Anjorin, who read the following statement.
This has been a painful and deeply traumatic chapter in our lives. No verdict or sentence can bring back our son Daniel, who we loved so dearly but we are grateful that justice has been served.Daniel was taken from us in a way that no family should ever have to endure.
His life had so much potential ahead. He was gifted academically, was kind and had a generous spirit that touched everyone who knew him.We carry that light with us, even in this dark time. We want to express our deepest thanks to the police, prosecution team, and all those who worked tirelessly to seek the truth. Your dedication has meant more than words can fully convey.
To everyone who has supported us through this ordeal, friends, family, our church, our workplaces, our children's schools and even strangers: thank you. Your love and support has been a lifeline.We honour Daniel's memory not in the shadow of this tragedy but through the love and happiness that he brought to us and all those who knew him. Thank you.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Sun
44 minutes ago
- The Sun
Spy chiefs probed ‘Russian double agent' at the heart of MI6 in huge 20-year global operation – and never caught ‘mole'
SPY chiefs probed a suspected "Russian double agent" at the heart of MI6 in a 20-year global operation. An investigation launched into the alleged mole, dubbed Operation Wedlock, sent surveillance officers around the world. 6 6 6 It included a team of over 30 MI5 officers, as reported by the Guardian, whose work spanned up to two decades. One on occasion, they were sent to the Middle East and sheltered in a CIA safe house. It is understood they were sent on the mission under terms that would have been illegal according to international law. Despite their work, MI5 were unable to conclude whether there had been a mole spying for Russia. A source told the Guardian: "We thought we had another Philby on our hands". Kim Philby was a prominent member of the notorious Cambridge Five, a ring of spies who passed information to the Soviet Union. With fascism plaguing Europe, Philby headed for Austria where he became active in helping the oppressed working class socialists. Alongside his wife, Jewish socialist Litzi Friedmann, the couple helped the anti-fascist cause in Vienna but later fled to London to escape the Nazis. Philby's life changed when he was introduced to a resident Soviet agent, code-named "Otto", at Regents Park. Along with four other Cambridge students, they were persuaded to start double lives as spies for the Soviets. Through the help of the KGB they worked their way into government jobs and passed on state secrets to the Russians. Philby was so good at his job he even secured a high-level job with MI6. In 1949 he was sent to Washington where be became a liaison intelligence officer 'combating Soviet subversion in Western Europe'. However, after two members of the Cambridge Five defected, suspicion grew over Philby and he resigned from the Foreign Office. Cleared of treason allegations, MI6 posted him to Beirut, where he worked as a correspondent for The Observer. In 1962, his cover was blown during a conversation with a MI5 officer at a party and he later made a 'sham' confession to be granted immunity. A year later a KGB guide smuggled him into Russia where he lived out the remainder of his life and was treated as a 'hero'. MI6 is the intelligence agency which supplies the Government with foreign intelligence (as opposed to MI5 which deals with domestic security threats). Its existence was not formally acknowledged until 1994. It is regarded as one of the best spy agencies in the world. Describing its work on its official website, the agency says: 'Our mission is to provide Her Majesty's Government with a global covert capability. 'We collect secret intelligence and mount operations overseas to prevent and detect serious crime, and promote and defend the national security and economic wellbeing of the United Kingdom.' Meanwhile, MI5 is widely understood to focus its intelligence efforts inside the UK but that isn't always the case. With threats to Britain's security often coming from abroad, the agency says it does "work outside the UK where it's necessary to protect the UK's national security or to counter security threats". It describes itself as a "publicly accountable civilian intelligence organisation", not a "secret police force", as it does not have the power to arrest people. Reporting to the Home Office, it was formed in 1909 under British army captain Vernon Kell to identify and counteract German spies in the country, according to the Britannica. The MI5 probe into an alleged mole was sparked in the 1990s and continued to at least 2015. It was launched after a tip off from the CIA in America, where they believed a British intelligence officer was working for Russia. Vladimir Putin was in charge of the FSB, Russia's secret intelligence service, at one point in the investigation. A source said: '[We were told] the target was a Russian spy. The US believed he was leaking information to the Russians. "He was suspect 1A. The job was taken more seriously than any other [MI5] was involved in. Wedlock eclipsed them all.' As reported by the Guardian, it has been revealed the UK believed they had identified the alleged spy. MI5 specialists were put in charge of tracking him down, although they did not operate from the Westminster HQ. The mission was so top secret, one insider claimed the officer in charge was briefed about the task in a church. Instead, the team were based in Wandsworth, south London, which was near an MI6 base. The officers were told the suspected mole held a senior role at MI6 and listening devices were planted inside his home, as well as secret cameras. He was tracked across the world, with officers travelling as far as Asia and the Middle East. The agents were given authentic passports, but fake names, and told they would be "on their own" if caught. A source also claimed the suspect was not thought to have been working by himself, but aided by two other people. The insider added how Wedlock was a 'highly unusual operation, the longest in recent memory and probably the most expensive'. 'MI5 never got the conclusive proof it was looking for,' they added, and MI6 "still [potentially] has a mole to find". 6 6 6
The Sun
an hour ago
- The Sun
‘Nightmare neighbour' arrested for posting smoke bombs and throwing eggs is found with sick pictures of children
A MAN dubbed a "nightmare neighbour" by police for posting smoke bombs and throwing eggs was found with sick pictures of children after being arrested. Andrew Wilson, 53, from Lichfield, Staffordshire, was jailed for multiple offences on June 19 at Stafford Crown Court. 1 Wilson was jailed after cutting off his neighbour's internet access and throwing smoke bombs and eggs. Staffordshire Police said Wilson had taken a dislike to his neighbour merely because they had a dog who they would play with in the garden. When officers arrested him he was then found with indecent images of children on his device. Police said he put smoke bombs through his neighbour's letterbox, threatened them with a baseball bat and cut off their internet access as part of the dispute. Wilson was jailed for two years and four months after admitting multiple offences. This included two counts of stalking involving alarm and distress which involved him throwing stones, smoke bombs and eggs at a neighbour. This is in addition to threatening them with the baseball bat and interfering with their wi-fi and CCTV cameras. Wilson also admitted to three counts of making an indecent photograph of a child relating to category A, B and C images. As part of his sentence, Wilson was handed a sexual harm prevention order and a notification order for ten years. He was made the subject of a restraining order indefinitely. Wilson was ordered to forfeit the internet tampering device and mobile phone to police as well as pay a victim surcharge of £228. An officer who lead the case from Lichfield local policing team, said: 'Wilson's conviction and sentence sends a clear message that those who engage in such disturbing and harmful behaviour will be prosecuted and brought to justice. "The safety and wellbeing of our community is our absolute priority, and we remain committed to protecting residents from those who pose a threat - whether through stalking or any other form of abuse. "We continue to work closely with partner agencies to support victims and ensure Lichfield remains a safe place for everyone.'
Reuters
an hour ago
- Reuters
Biden joins thousands paying final respects to slain Minnesota lawmaker and husband
ST. PAUL, Minnesota, June 27 (Reuters) - Thousands of mourners, including former U.S. President Joe Biden, filed through Minnesota's state Capitol Rotunda on Friday to pay final respects to slain lawmaker Melissa Hortman and her husband, Mark, who were gunned down by an assassin earlier this month. The couple lay in state in St. Paul on the eve of a private funeral set for Saturday morning, two weeks after a man impersonating a police officer shot them to death at their home in what authorities are treating as a politically motivated murder. For several hours, members of the public lined up in a column of mourners stretching across the front plaza of the state Capitol building and along an adjacent boulevard. After entering the building, people walked single-file past the Hortmans' flower-bedecked caskets. A portrait of each stood next to their respective coffins. Perched between them was an urn bearing the remains of their golden retriever, Gilbert, along with a photograph of the pet. The dog, too, was shot in the attack and later euthanized. Biden arrived at the statehouse late in the afternoon. After the public was cleared from the rotunda for security purposes, the Democratic former president was ushered in alone. He paused for a moment in front of the caskets, then exited the building. Following his departure, the rotunda was reopened to the public, and the procession of mourners resumed. Still more people joined the line outside, hoping for a chance to pay their respects. The viewing was scheduled to end at 5 p.m. local time. Representative Hortman, the top-ranking Democrat in the Minnesota House, became the first woman to lie in state in the St. Paul Capitol Rotunda, according to the Minnesota Star Tribune. Her husband was believed to be the first person other than a military figure or public official to be so honored. The suspect in their June 14 killings, Vance Boelter, 57, is also accused of shooting and wounding a second Democratic legislator, state Senator John Hoffman, and his wife, Yvette, in their home a few miles away.' The accused gunman was arrested on the night of June 16 following a massive two-day manhunt that was the largest in state history. Boelter faces state and federal murder charges. According to prosecutors, investigators recovered notebooks from his car and residence that included the names of dozens of Democratic legislators, along with abortion-rights advocates. The shootings unfolded against a backdrop of increasing political violence in the U.S. in an era of extreme social and partisan polarization.
