Osman Ebrahim: ‘a bubbly, fun-loving guy’

THE driver of a car involved in a fatal road accident was attacked during an inquest when shocking CCTV footage was shown of the moment a pedestrian was hit.

A group of men rained punches and kicks on Zana Mohammed at St Pancras Coroner’s Court on Monday, causing the hearing to be adjourned.

One of the men pounced after the inquest was shown CCTV film of the moment the car Mr Mohammed was driving hit Osman Ebrahim as he crossed the road with a friend, throwing them six feet in the air, before speeding away.

Mr Ebrahim, 21, was killed in the collision outside Club Aquarium in Old Street in March last year.

At the inquest two men rushed into the jury box and kicked Mr Moham­med from above as a third punched him in the face before the attack was broken up by family members and others attending the hearing. The ambulance and police were called.

A 23-year-old man was arrested on suspicion of affray. He has been bailed to return to a police station in early May.

Tension had been simmering in the court as Mr Mohammed told coroner Mary Hassell he had been doing 30mph and had not even realised he had hit the men, telling her he thought someone might have thrown a brick.

His two passengers, Ali Abdirahman and Moham­med Musa, said they were either too drunk or sleepy to realise what had happened.

The three men, then aged 18, 19 and 21, were arrested the following day after going to a police station, but all were released and faced no further action.

At the time of his death Mr Ebrahim was described as a “bubbly, fun-loving guy” and a “gentle giant”. Staff from nearby Old Street fire station tried to save his life but he was pronounced dead at the scene.

The accident happened shortly after closing time at Club Aquarium as dozens of clubbers thronged the street chatting after a school reunion night before making their way home.

Floral tributes left at the death crash scene

According to door staff at the club, young men in cars frequently speed along the road, doing laps around the Old Street roundabout to show off when the club is open.

Witnesses told the court they saw Mr Moham­med’s grey BMW driving at between 40mph and 50mph just before hitting Mr Ebrahim, a student who lived with his family in Tottenham, and his friend.

In a statement read to the inquest, one bouncer said: “I heard a loud bang, like the sound of two cars crashing. They were flung six feet in the air. They landed with a loud noise that was gut-wrenching. The car did not stop. It just drove on.

“The way the car was being driven they were lucky they only killed one person.”

Another bouncer, Alexander Christophides, told the inquest: “The car was going too fast. Much faster than all the other cars driving past.” Mr Ebrahim’s friend of 10 years, Corneille Masengo, who was injured in the accident, told the inquest they “didn’t drink that much – a couple of shots” and that he was aware of his surroundings.

He said they were in the central reservation and looked before they stepped out, though he could not recall if they were heading back towards the club or over the road to catch a taxi. “We were crossing the road and I saw a bright light,” he said. “I just froze. It was too late. I couldn’t do anything. When I was crossing it was clear.”

He suffered a fractured elbow, lost two nails and his back, neck and legs were injured.

Mr Mohammed, who does not drink, and his two passengers had also been in the club, and were driving back to south London. Mr Abdirahman told the inquest he was aware the car had hit something. When asked by Ms Hassell why he did not ask the driver to stop, he said: “I was panicking. I wasn’t thinking.”

Ms Hassell said Mr Musa’s account that he did not even realise they had hit anything did not “sound convincing”.

Mr Musa replied: “I was conked out. I didn’t hear nothing. I am being honest with you. I heard nothing.” In his police interview he said “no comment” when asked about the accident.
“You understand it is a criminal offence to lie in court,” Ms Hassell told him. “Has anything you have said to me been the truth?”

He replied: “Yes, all of it.”

Driver Mr Mohammed said his view was blocked by a taxi moving across his lane, forcing him into the third lane facing Old Street roundabout, where he hit Mr Ebrahim and his friend.
“Something hit my car. I was not sure what it was and I carried on my way,” he said.

The hearing was adjourned to a later date before it could hear from the crash scene investigator.