🔴 ROMARIO GORDON JAILED FOR KILLING BOY, 16, IN FRONT OF MOTHER
A man has been jailed for 13 years for killing a 16-year-old boy who was stabbed to death in front of his mother in her bedroom.
Romario Gordon, 22, born 13 July 2003, of St Helens Grove, Monkston, has been jailed at the Old Bailey for his role in the brutal killing of 16-year-old Camron Smith, who was hunted down and stabbed to death in front of his mother during a violent, revenge-driven rampage across Croydon.
Gordon, who was convicted of manslaughter at trial, was sentenced after prosecutors outlined how he and a group of armed associates hijacked a Toyota Prius minicab, stormed multiple homes and ultimately forced their way into the teenager’s address in Bracken Avenue on 1 July 2021. The group were “effectively hunting as a pack”, the court heard, intent on retaliation for an earlier stabbing involving one of their friends.
Judge Anuja Dhir KC told Gordon that he arrived at Camron’s home knowing weapons were being carried, including large machetes, and that causing serious injury was part of the group’s clear intention. She said the fatal attack took place in the most harrowing circumstances possible, with Camron cornered in his mother’s bedroom after he and his mother desperately attempted to barricade themselves inside.
Investigators established that the gang had already committed two aggravated break-ins before reaching the Smith household. At the first property, the lone female occupant awoke to find a masked intruder in her room. At the second, the group entered but fled within seconds. At the third address, they kicked down the door, fought with occupants downstairs and then chased Camron upstairs.
In the confined space of the bedroom, the group surrounded the unarmed teenager, who was dressed only in his underwear.
His mother, Audrey Johnson, attempted to seize a large black zombie knife with a serrated 16-inch blade and then positioned herself between her son and the approaching attackers, but the assault continued. Camron was stabbed multiple times and died shortly afterwards despite the efforts of paramedics.
Gordon was captured on CCTV fleeing the stolen minicab and later disposing of a machete on Hastings Road, Lower Addiscombe. Within 48 hours of the killing, he boarded a flight from Heathrow Airport and fled to The Gambia.
An international arrest warrant was issued, and he remained abroad for more than a year, running a small car-washing business until his return to the UK in August 2023, where he was arrested on arrival.
Defending, James Scobie KC told the court that his client had expressed “huge regret and genuine remorse”, noting that the decision to flee the UK had been driven by family pressure.
Gordon had written a personal letter to the judge addressing his conduct, though the prosecution maintained that his flight significantly obstructed the investigation and delayed justice.
Gordon becomes the fourth man convicted in connection with Camron’s death.
Romain La Pierre, 23 date of birth: 16 July 2002, of Celia Road, Islington, was previously convicted of murder and robbery and jailed for life with a minimum term of 28 years.
Jordan Tcheuko, 22 (9 January 2003), of St Johns Road, Wembley, was convicted of manslaughter and sentenced to 14 years.
A 16-year-old boy from Croydon was jailed for eight years for manslaughter and robbery in February 2023, while a second 16-year-old from Coulsdon was sentenced to 18 months for robbery in July 2022.
Detective Chief Inspector Samantha Townsend of Specialist Crime South said the inquiry, which spanned several years, relied on extensive forensic work linking the defendants to the abandoned minicab through DNA, CCTV analysis and witness evidence. She confirmed that police are still actively hunting two further individuals believed to be involved in the killing.
The Old Bailey heard that the case required multiple trials due to the number of defendants, the scale of the evidence and the complexities created by Gordon’s time abroad. Prosecutors emphasised that the group’s coordinated search for rivals, armed with large knives and moving between addresses in a stolen vehicle, represented a deliberate and escalating sequence of violent acts culminating in Camron’s death.
The sentencing brings a further conclusion to a case that began with a robbery on 30 June 2021 and ended with the fatal attack in the early hours of the following morning. The court was told that while Gordon did not wield the fatal weapon, he was an integral part of the group’s joint enterprise and knowingly participated in the unlawful mission that resulted in the teenager’s murder.
