Three teenage drug runners have been convicted of the savage killing of a 51-year-old homeless man, Anthony Marks, after selfies and videos they took on the night of the attack were used by detectives to link them to the crime.
Mr. Marks was targeted in what police described as a “ruthless and senseless act of retribution” connected to London’s county lines drug operations networks that traffic drugs from cities into rural areas using vulnerable young people as couriers.
The fatal assault occurred in the early hours of Saturday, 10 August 2024, near King’s Cross Station, where Mr. Marks had been living rough. He was first struck by a car bonnet before being chased down, kicked, stamped on, and beaten with a gin bottle by the teenage gang.
Police officers discovered Mr. Marks suffering from severe facial and arm injuries after he collapsed inside King’s Cross Station around 5:25 a.m. He was rushed to hospital but succumbed to his injuries five weeks later, on Saturday, 14 September 2024, prompting the Metropolitan Police to launch a murder investigation.
Investigators said the violence stemmed from a drug-related dispute. The teenagers, all then aged between 16 and 17, were working for a county-lines gang and had been distributing narcotics across parts of London on the night of the killing.
Earlier that evening, one of the girls was allegedly robbed of a quantity of drugs. Seeking revenge, the group was instructed to find out who was responsible. They believed that Mr. Marks, who was known in the area, might have had information about the theft.
The trio confronted him in a bin shed near Argyle Street. An argument broke out, escalating into a brutal assault. CCTV footage later showed the suspects pursuing Mr. Marks down the street, with one of them brandishing what appeared to be a car bumper. Witnesses reported hearing shouts and cries for help before the attackers fled.
A bystander armed with a cricket bat is said to have chased the assailants away, preventing further violence.
The Metropolitan Police described the case as one of the most disturbing examples of “youth-fueled gang violence” they have encountered. What made the crime especially chilling, investigators said, was the attitude of the perpetrators afterward.
In the hours surrounding the killing, the teenagers took selfies and recorded videos, apparently celebrating and laughing together. Some of these images were later recovered from their phones and used to place them at the scene of the crime.
Forensic analysis and CCTV footage allowed detectives to reconstruct their movements from the night of the attack back to an apartment just streets away. Inside the flat, investigators seized clothing, mobile devices, and messages that referenced the assault.
Detective Inspector Jim Barry, of the Met’s Specialist Crime Command, said the case demonstrated how technology helped uncover the truth:
“This was a particularly callous murder that gives a disturbing insight into the ruthless brutality of county lines gangs,” Barry said.
“They believed they had escaped justice even posing for selfies together and laughing about what they had done. But those same images became the evidence that sealed their fate. The fact that they were teenagers makes this crime all the more shocking.
The investigation led police to three suspects:
- Jaidee Bingham, then 16, known as “Ghost”, from Dagenha
- Eymaiyah Lee Bradshaw-McKoy, then 16, from Lambeth.
- Mia Campos-Jorge, then 17, from Tottenham.
Following a series of coordinated raids across London, Bingham was arrested on Friday, 4 October 2024, and charged with murder two days later. Bradshaw-McKoy was detained on Thursday, 28 November, and charged on Monday, 29 November, while Campos-Jorge was taken into custody on Monday, 9 December 2024, and charged the same day.
A fourth individual, Harry Gittins, 36, a known drug user from King’s Cross, was also charged with murder. However, the jury at the Old Bailey was unable to reach a verdict in his case. A further hearing is scheduled for Wednesday, 5 November 2025, to determine whether prosecutors will seek a retrial.
After a lengthy trial at the Old Bailey, the jury returned their verdicts on Thursday, 30 October 2025.
Bingham, now 18, was found guilty of murder by a unanimous decision. Bradshaw-McKoy, now 18, and Campos-Jorge, now 19, were each found guilty of manslaughter by majority verdicts.
The judge described the killing as a “cowardly and merciless act of mob violence” carried out under the influence of drugs and gang indoctrination.
All three defendants will be sentenced at a later date.
Detective Inspector Barry said the case reflects the growing concern over how London’s youth are being drawn into gang-related crime and drug networks.
“The ages of these offenders are shocking they were still children when they committed this act. But their youth does not excuse their violent actions,” Barry stated.
“County lines gangs thrive on manipulation and fear. They recruit impressionable teenagers, turn them into enforcers, and feed off the destruction left behind. We will continue to pursue those responsible for this cycle of violence.”
Local advocacy groups and anti-violence campaigners have since renewed calls for greater investment in youth intervention programmes, community policing, and drug rehabilitation initiatives to prevent similar tragedies.
Mr. Marks’s death, they said, serves as a grim reminder of how the county-lines epidemic continues to destroy both young lives and vulnerable individuals on London’s streets.
The three convicted teenagers remain in custody pending sentencing.
The Metropolitan Police have urged anyone with information about gang or drug-related activity to report it anonymously via Crimestoppers UK.
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