The London Metropolitan Police have revealed how an 18-year-old Nigerian, Emmanuel Popoola, was convicted for the fatal shooting of fellow teenager, Keanu Harker, following a dispute that began in a Snapchat group chat.
According to a statement released by the Metropolitan Police after the conclusion of a six-week trial at the Old Bailey, Popoola and four others were found guilty over the killing, which occurred on June 26, 2025, in Enfield, London.
Those convicted alongside Popoola are Tayvon Etefia, Eliezer Mbaki, Anais King and a 17-year-old whose identity remains protected under UK law.
Police said Harker was riding his bicycle along Great Cambridge Road when Popoola and Etefia, travelling on a Sur-Ron electric motorcycle, allegedly tracked him before Popoola opened fire, striking the victim in the head and chest.
Investigators disclosed that forensic analysis of mobile phones recovered during the investigation uncovered voice messages exchanged in a Snapchat group chat involving members of rival street gangs in the Enfield area.
According to the police, the messages showed that Popoola became enraged after being mocked over claims that he could not afford mobile data, with prosecutors also presenting drill rap videos allegedly celebrating Harker’s killing.
The Metropolitan Police said CCTV footage captured Popoola and Etefia speaking with friends at Enfield Town Park shortly before the shooting. Detectives believe Popoola was carrying the murder weapon inside a plastic bag seen in the footage.
Following the attack, the suspects allegedly abandoned the electric motorcycle, disposed of clothing and other potential evidence, and fled in a vehicle driven by Mbaki.
Police said Popoola escaped to France two days after the killing aboard a Eurostar train using a one-way ticket allegedly purchased by his girlfriend, King.
His accomplice, Etefia, was arrested by officers of the British Transport Police at London’s St Pancras International Station while attempting to board a train to France.
Investigators later tracked Popoola through King after she travelled to Paris to meet him.
Acting on intelligence, British detectives, working with French authorities, arrested him at an apartment in Paris on August 3, 2025.
He was extradited to the United Kingdom 11 days later.
The police said Popoola and Etefia are scheduled to be sentenced on July 9 and 10, while Mbaki will also be sentenced during the same period.
The 17-year-old convicted of assisting an offender will be sentenced on August 7, while King’s sentencing date is yet to be announced.
Detective Chief Inspector Lucie Card, who led the investigation, said the murder was triggered by insults exchanged on social media.
She said the investigation established that the victim was killed because the attackers took offence at comments made in a Snapchat group chat, adding that Popoola armed himself with a pistol and, with Etefia’s assistance, carried out what she described as a cowardly drive-by shooting.
Card said detectives spent months assembling evidence that secured the convictions of those responsible for the murder and others who assisted them.
Reacting to the verdict, Harker’s family said the convictions had brought only “some measure of justice,” noting that no prison sentence could compensate for the pain of losing their son.
The family also urged authorities and society to confront the growing influence of gang culture among young people, warning that more lives could be lost if urgent action is not taken.