UK jury convicts man in drive-by shooting of 9-year-old Kerala girl

"Weakness on her left side means she can only watch from the sidelines, living with a titanium plate in her skull and a bullet still in her brain," the girl’s mother said in a statement to police.

London: A man involved in the planning of a drive-by shooting in north-east London which left a nine-year-old Kerala girl with life-changing injuries has been found guilty of the attack.

The Metropolitan Police said a jury convicted 33-year-old Javon Riley on Monday of the attempted murder of three men as well as causing grievous bodily harm to the nine-year-old girl.

His trial at the Old Bailey court in London heard how Riley did not shoot the gun but played a key role in orchestrating and implementing a plan intended to end the lives of rival gang members of an organised crime network on May 29, 2024.

The innocent girl was caught in the crossfire and left with life-changing injuries as a result of a stray bullet being lodged in her head.

"In a single moment, the future we had imagined for our daughter was torn away. She was once an energetic, adventurous child — everything that celebrated movement, energy, and life,” said the girl’s mother, in a statement issued by the Met Police.

"Now, weakness on her left side means she can only watch from the sidelines, living with a titanium plate in her skull and a bullet still in her brain. As parents, we are shattered — emotionally, physically, mentally, and financially. Each day brings new challenges, from her slower growth on one side to the emotional and mental scars that cannot be seen,” she said.

The family from Birmingham had been on a day out in London and were enjoying a meal at a Turkish restaurant in Dalston, in the north-east London borough of Hackney, when the girl was struck with a flying bullet.

"The world we once believed was safe for our child now feels frightening and uncertain. This was not just an accident — even if our daughter was not the intended target, those responsible were still attempting to take lives. It is brutal and inhumane. We live with this pain every day, knowing nothing will ever be the same for our family," added her mother's statement.

Javon Riley will be sentenced at the Old Bailey on September 12.

Meanwhile, the Met Police specialist detectives are offering a financial reward of up to GBP 15,000 for information that leads to the identification, arrest and prosecution of the man who fired the weapon.

“Javon Riley’s actions traumatically altered the trajectory of a little girl’s life. While this outcome serves as a slither of justice, the dangerous individual responsible for pulling the trigger remains on our streets,” said Detective Inspector Ben Dalloway, who led the investigation.

On the night of the shooting outside the bustling restaurant last May, a gunman pulled up on a stolen Ducati Monster and opened fire six times.

One of those bullets lodged in the brain of the young girl as she ate ice cream with her family, with the other rounds striking three men. All four were taken to hospital for emergency, life-saving surgery.