Derek Dooley Way murder 'was planned attack'

The murder of Jordan Thomas was a 'planned attack' following a long-running feud between two rival groups, a court has heard.
Jordan ThomasJordan Thomas
Jordan Thomas

Asif Yousaf and Jama Ahmed are accused of killing Jordan in a shooting on Derek Dooley Way in Sheffield last December.

Yousaf's parents are also in the dock, accused of perverting the course of justice.

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Jordan Thomas, 22, was shot twice through the chest at close range and died of his injuries, Sheffield Crown Court heard today.

The Ford Mondeo he was travelling in with friend Neshaun Ferguson stopped at a set of traffic lights on the junction to the Sheffield Parkway at around 10.15pm that night.

A masked man got out of a Mitsubishi which had been following the Mondeo, went up to the Mondeo's front passenger side window and fired three shots using a gun that appeared to have a silencer attached.

Two hit Mr Thomas in the chest and one one hit driver Mr Ferguson, who did not initially realise he had been shot.

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The Mitsubishi was driven off at speed and abandoned at Ponderosa fields around five minutes later.

Mr Thomas was conscious after being shot and 'gasping for breath'. He asked Mr Ferguson to call an ambulance.

But after suffering massive internal bleeding Mr Thomas died at the Northern General Hospital an hour later.

Opening the prosecution case, Bryan Cox QC said the car used by Jordan's killers was bought specifically for the attack just two hours before the murder.

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He said the prosecution cannot prove the identity of the shooter but can link Ahmed to the purchase of the car and Yousaf's DNA was found inside the abandoned car indicating that he was the driver.

The feud between the two groups dated back to 2011 when Jordan's cousin James Knowles killed a man called Mubarak Ali.

In the days leading up to the murder there was a confrontation between the two groups outside the Forward nightclub in Charter Square, with shots fired later that night.

On December 20, Mr Cox says Ahmed was seen wearing a balaclava and carrying a gun looking for Jordan Thomas.

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The next day a call was made from Ahmed's phone to buy the Mitsubishi Shogun car used in the killing.

On the day of the murder, December 21, a call was made from Ahmed's phone to Yousaf's phone.

Mr Cox said that CCTV will be shown to the jury of the Mitsubishi following the Mondeo Mr Thomas was in in the minutes before the killing.

He added that there was a 'one in a billion' DNA match of Yousaf found in the abandoned Mitsubishi.

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Mr Cox said both of Yousaf's parents gave false statements claiming he had been at home with them at the time of the murder.

Mr Cox concluded by saying that 'old wounds' were reopened by the nightclub incident, leading to the plan to kill Jordan Thomas and that the jury can be sure Yousaf and Ahmed 'are each guilty of murder'.

The trial continues

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