Man who fatally stabbed his neighbour in Enfield jailed

Abdi Ibrahim Osman, 43, of Purcell House, Holbrook Close, EN1, pleaded guilty at the Old Bailey to murder and possession of a knife.

He was sentenced on Monday, July 5, to 23-and-a-half-years in jail.

Osman, moved into the block in January 2020 whilst still on licence for offences of attempted robbery, and Inflicting GBH imposed in 2016.

The court heard that late in the evening of September 12 and into the early hours of the morning of September 13, a number of visitors and residents had noticed Osman outside the block.

He appeared drunk and was stumbling around and shouting.

The victim, Nahid Ahmed, had spent the day with his family. He had taken his mother and sister shopping and to visit relatives.

After returning late and carrying the shopping inside he had returned to sit in his car whilst he spoke to his friends on his mobile telephone.

A neighbour saw the defendant kick Nahid's BMW.

Nahid Ahmed (photo Met Police)

He got out and pushed Osman backwards before he fell to the floor drunk. The victim then got back into his car and closed the door.

Shortly after another neighbour had tried to pick up Osman from the ground, but he was too drunk to stand.

Ten minutes later he heard shouting with the defendant abusing Nahid.

The incident took place as Nahid was speaking to his girlfriend in the car on the phone. She heard a drunk man and voices in the background.

While she was chatting she suddenly heard his car door opening and then all she could then hear was her boyfriend wheezing. She kept calling his name, but he did not answer.

The neighbour who had tried to help the defendant earlier looked over the balcony and saw Nahid lying flat on his back on the floor next to the open door of his car.

He could hear that he was breathing strangely and called an ambulance.

Paramedics arrived, but the victim was not breathing. It’s thought he was in cardiac arrest and despite CPR, Nahid was pronounced dead at 1:25am.

The post-mortem later revealed cause of death as a single stab wound to the right side of the chest.

When officers arrived on the scene they found blood on the lift buttons at the location. Fingerprints in the blood were sent for comparison and found to be those of the defendant, and the blood matched Nahid’s.

CCTV footage subsequently recovered from camera’s covering the premises captured Osman - visibly unsteady on his feet - entering the block and then the lift in Purcell House.

Officers knocked on Osman’s door that night and when he opened it, his hands were covered in blood.

He was arrested and a search of his flat discovered a blood-stained knife found underneath his bed. Subsequent analysis confirmed it was Nahid's blood.

Whilst under arrest Osman was captured on the officer’s body-worn camera saying “is he dead?” and claiming that he had been attacked.

Mrs Rushanara Ahmed, Nahid's mother said: "My son, Nahid, was just 26-years-old when he was stolen from me. For 17 of those years, we had been a team, just him and me. He was, and still is, my whole world.

"Nahid had a very strong sense of family. He loved spending time with his grandparents, uncles, aunts and cousins. Family was always his priority and he never failed to step up, if help was needed within his family, or with his many friends or in the local community.

"He was an excellent student, understanding from a young age that to get anywhere in life, you need to work hard, and he did just that.

"Nahid was a good person, very well-liked and respected, hardworking, a law-abiding good citizen, devoted to his family and he was very caring and kind. I could not have been prouder of the child he was, or of the adult he became.

"I am left without my son. I grieve for him every minute of every day. My life is over but continues on auto-pilot.''

Katherine Goodwin, Detective Chief Inspector, of South West Specialist Crime, led the investigation. She said: “This was a completely mindless and unprovoked attack on a young man, who was simply sitting in his car outside of his home, when the defendant decided to attack him.

"The defendants actions were callous and heartless and this shows how easily using a knife can end someone’s life. The impact on Nahid’s family and friends has been devastating and whilst no sentence will ever be enough to bring Nahid back, I hope that today will help them in some way with their grieving.”