Chris Kaba shot gang rival in Oval Space Hackney nightclub

Neither the 24-year-old rapper’s gang history nor his criminal record was revealed in the trial of firearms officer Sergeant Martyn Blake after a senior judge ruled it had no bearing on the issues for jurors to decide.

A reporting restriction has now been lifted and it can now be revealed that Mr Kaba was linked to a shooting at the Oval Space Club in Hackney, and that the Audi Q8 the father-of-one was driving when he was shot in Streatham been linked to three previous gun incidents in 2022.

CCTV footage allegedly captured the moment Mr Kaba opened fire on a rival in a nightclub on August 30, 2022.

Mr Kaba had targeted a rival to his '67 gang' at the Oval Space club in Hackney, an earlier Old Bailey trial had heard.

He and other 67 associates had been at a party in the nightclub when he spotted 25-year-old Brandon Malutshi, who was associated with the rival “17 gang”.

Mr Kaba was said to be “moving mad” before he produced a handgun and shot at Mr Malutshi, causing panic on the dancefloor.

Wearing a grey tracksuit, he then pursued the victim into the street, brandishing the handgun and shooting as Mr Malutshi tried to flee, it was alleged.

A number of shots were fired before Mr Malutshi collapsed, having suffered gunshot wounds to both legs.

He was taken to hospital where he was treated for non-life-threatening injuries.

Mr Kaba was identified on CCTV footage of the shooting taken from inside and outside the club.

The gun, which was not recovered, had been smuggled into the club by Marcus Pottinger, who had previously worked there and was able to avoid security checks.

Mr Kaba had travelled to Hackney in the Audi but made his getaway in a Range Rover.

The Audi was driven away by Shemiah Bell, who parked it outside his home for Mr Kaba to pick up in the morning.

Following an earlier trial at the Old Bailey, Pottinger, 31, and Bell, 32, were found guilty of wounding with intent.

The pair along with Connel Bamgboye, 29, were found guilty of possession of a firearm with intent to cause fear of violence.

In April, Judge Simon Mayo KC jailed Bell for 10 years, Pottinger for nine years and Bamgboye for five years and six months.

Sentencing, Judge Mayo told the defendants: “Shortly after 4am on the morning of August 30, 2022 Chris Kaba shot Brandon Malutshi twice in the leg – once on the dance floor of The Oval Space nightclub in Hackney, and once on Hackney Road, as Malutshi tried to escape.

“Once inside the venue Kaba, and other members of your group gathered by the bar. Kaba and Bamgboye were wearing balaclavas.

“It is clear that at some point Kaba spotted Brandon Malutshi, a man who the prosecution said was associated with a gang known as ’17’ from Wandsworth.

“It was an agreed fact that Kaba was a core member of a rival gang from Brixton known as ’67’. It was also agreed that Bell and Bamgboye were associated with that same gang.”

Even though Mr Kaba was named in the charges and in the trial as a co-conspirator, his identity could not be reported until the conclusion of Mr Blake’s trial.

Defence lawyer Patrick Gibbs KC applied – unsuccessfully – for the jury in Mr Blake’s murder trial to be told about Mr Kaba’s history of violence.