Birmingham woman held over double killing at outdoor lockdown party
Abayomi Ajose and Cheriff Tall died after attending a ‘spontaneous gathering’ in Manchester.
A 32-year-old woman has been arrested over a double killing at an outdoor lockdown party.
Abayomi Ajose, 36, was gunned down along with 21-year-old Cheriff Tall at a “spontaneous gathering” which followed hours after a Black Lives Matter family event nearby in Moss Side, Manchester, on Saturday.
Greater Manchester Police said: “Yesterday evening (Thursday) a woman aged 32 from the Birmingham area was arrested on suspicion of two counts of murder.
“She remains in custody for questioning.
“Police are continuing to appeal for information.”
Both men were shot around 12.55am on Sunday in Caythorpe Street and later died in hospital.
The earlier organised community event passed off peacefully but it was later followed by a “spontaneous gathering”, police said.
Residents complained about the disturbance from 10pm on and police say they monitored the gathering but had no intelligence of any criminal activity and later decided it was “unachievable” to safely disperse as numbers grew.
Footage circulating on social media showed hundreds of people dancing to loud music.
Police and mayor of Greater Manchester Andy Burnham insisted the gathering, with a DJ and PA system on a car park in a large residential area, was not a “rave” after days earlier promising to crack down on such gatherings during the lockdown.
Paying tribute to social care worker Mr Ajose – also known as Junior – his wife Lola said: “Junior was an exceptional human being, he was my king and he treated me like his queen.
“Anything I needed he would get for me and always went beyond my expectations. The best thing about him for me was the way he showed his love for our three children.
“He will be sadly missed by all, I am devastated and heartbroken. I am left without a doting husband and a loving father to our three children.”
Mr Tall had visited the Houses of Parliament to lobby MPs about youth violence before his death.
In a tribute to him, his family said: “Cheriff loved his parents dearly, he was very close to his mother and it’s impossible to say that she will ever recover from this senseless loss. He was a model son, they doted on him and they are overcome with grief.”
