THE girlfriend of a teenager accused of murdering Umar Tufail has admitted lying to the police, a court has heard.
Natasha Henry initially told officers that Kyrone Daley had not told her he was in the car involved in the drive-by shooting.
But this week she dramatically changed her story, telling jurors at the Old Bailey that, after the killing, Daley returned to her home in Northwood Road, Thornton Heath, and told her Sanchez Thomas, the driver of the car, had "shot the boy".
Asked why she was only mentioning it now, she replied: "I wasn't fully aware of what was going on and I didn't want to get anyone in trouble".
Umar, 25, was shot in the head at close range as he sat in his car in Wharncliffe Road, South Norwood, on July 15 last year.
It is claimed Daley and Thomas, both 19, are jointly responsible for the "deliberate execution".
On Wednesday, jurors were read an admission that "it is accepted that it could be said Sanchez Thomas had a motive to harm Umar Tufail by way of revenge".
Daley claims the killing was a result of a feud between Amir Tufail, Umar's brother, and Thomas, a member of Squeeze Section, a south London gang.
It is alleged that 18-year-old Amir – a member of Croydon's Block Cartel gang who is nicknamed Renz - threatened Thomas with a knife in Regina Road, South Norwood, in October 2011 and then stabbed him during an incident in Tooting in March 2012.
On the afternoon of the killing, Amir and his friend Stephen Crawford, 18, were playing computer games in an upstairs bedroom when they heard a gunshot.
Crawford went to the window and drew the curtain in time to see a grey car drive away.
As they ran downstairs, Amir picked up, and then dropped, a knife before shouting: "Umar has been shot."
They rushed outside and found Umar slumped over the wheel of his family's red Vauxhall Corsa with a gunshot wound to the side of the head.
Jurors were told that Mr Crawford called 999 but when police arrived he gave them a false name.
Michael Borrelli QC, representing Thomas, asked Amir: "It was your view at the time that it may have been you who was the intended victim of the shooting, is that correct?"
"Yes," said Amir.
Mr Borrelli continued: "Do you remember telling a female police officer that you had a lot of enemies?"
"Yes," the teenager replied.
Daley claims Thomas offered him a lift to his girlfriend Miss Henry's house on the day of the shooting.
He alleges they stopped outside a house in Wharncliffe Road and Thomas began to talk to Umar.
"Thomas repeatedly accused the victim of being Renz, which he denied," said prosecution barrister William Boyce QC, reading from Daley's statement.
"He reached down below the driver's seat and drew out what transpired to be a firearm, which the defendant (Daley) was completely unaware he had in his possession.
"When Thomas established that the victim was the brother of Renz he, without notice, shot him."
Thomas, known by the name Limits, claims that a third passenger in the car, picked up during the journey after asking for a lift to Spa Hill, shot Umar.
He claims the alleged killer is a member of Croydon's Don't Say Nothing (DSN) gang, known by the nickname Pauser.
After Thomas was informed that Pauser had a "cast iron" alibi, he now says he was referring to someone else.
Daley and Thomas both deny murder.
The trial continues.
