A teenager has been found guilty of killing a “loving, caring, bright” schoolboy who was rammed off his scooter by a drug dealing gang and stabbed nine times.
Jaden Moodie, 14, lay "quivering" as he bled to death in the road after the attack in east London on the evening of January 8.
Ayoub Majdouline, 19, was today found guilty of the "cowardly and shocking" murder.
Jaden's family said "yes" and looked emotional in court as the verdict was delivered.
A court heard he was one of five youths driving around the capital in a stolen Mercedes, looking for rival gang members to attack.
Jaden had been out drug dealing in Leyton, East London, for the “Beaumont” gang, also known as Let's Get Rich, before his death, the Old Bailey was told.
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Harrowing CCTV of the killing showed the Mercedes plough into Jaden on his scooter and knock him to the ground.
The talented boxer was then set upon by the group and stabbed to death in a frenzied attack that lasted just 14 seconds.
The Mercedes sped off, leaving Jaden to die in a pool of blood in the road. Nothing could be done to save him.
In a witness statement, read out in court, one man said he saw three men "stomping on someone" before someone said, "quick, let's get out of here".
Police said "enquiries continue" into identifying the other occupants of the car.
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Majdouline, from Wembley, north London, had denied murder and possession of a knife during the trial.
The day before Jaden’s death, Majdouline was caught on CCTV at a Travelodge hotel in Walthamstow, with distinctive Nike Air Max trainers he was accused of wearing during the knife attack.
Majdouline was also wearing yellow rubber gloves, one of which was later found to have traces of Jaden's blood and the defendant's DNA, it was claimed.
Jaden, had moved to the capital from Nottingham the previous summer, and dreamed of becoming an entrepreneur.
His devastated cousin Leon Green previously described him as a “loving, caring, bright young lad”.
Leon, a charity manager and former semi-professional footballer, 35, told the Mirror earlier this year: “We need to save our streets and save young people like Jaden, who have ambitions, dreams and a whole life to live.
“Jaden had ambitions at such a young age, including setting up his own clothing brand and helping the homeless. You could just tell by speaking to him that he was going places.”
The family have launched the Jaden Moodie Foundation to honour his life and give youngsters the opportunities that have become increasingly out of reach.
Dad-of-two Leon added: “We’ve spoken to these kids and they feel like no one really cares about them. They don’t have fear. They will go out and carry weapons and they don’t care because if they get stopped it’s just a slap on the wrist.
“There needs to be an alternative. They need to be shown discipline, more skills and education, and think about what it is that makes them want to pick up a knife and kill someone.
“If we are not going to look after these kids then what the hell are we going to do in 15 years time? It will be a warzone.”
Meanwhile, jurors were told how Majdouline had a troubled upbringing in Leyton and had turned to drug dealing for older boys to make money.
The court heard how his Irish mother and Moroccan father split up when he was aged seven.
His father died in 2015, and Majdouline went to live with an aunt and later went into foster care.
The court was told he was identified by the National Crime Agency in 2018 as a victim of "modern slavery", amid concerns of exploitation by older youths.
Giving evidence, Majdouline told jurors how he sold drugs "for and with" the Mali Boys gang, including county lines in Basingstoke, Ipswich and Andover.
He had been caught with drugs and carrying knives, but despite serving time behind bars, went straight back to dealing. He told the trial he would carry a knife for “safety”.
He said: "At the time, I did not feel like I was being supported by social services and I never lived by myself before.
"I was not getting really any money from social services – £50 a week – and I did not really know how to spend money … Just two or three days I would run out of money and I did not have money to buy food.
"Everyone in Leyton that I knew was selling drugs to make money so I just thought … to survive."
When he turned 18, Majdouline said he got "confused" sorting out jobseekers' allowance.
After a few weeks of volunteer work, he returned to drug dealing, saying: "I felt I had to make money the only way I knew how to make money."
In a series of agreed facts read to the court, jurors learned that Jaden had been in trouble with police since he was 13-years-old.
He was handed a youth conditional caution in March last year after police seized an air powered pistol, Rambo knife and cannabis during an altercation in Nottingham.
In November last year, he admitted appearing in a Snapchat video with an imitation firearm.
The previous month, Jaden was found with crack cocaine at an address in Bournemouth, jurors were told.
Detective Inspector Dave Hillier from the Met Police Specialist Crime team, said: “Majdouline and his accomplices went out on the evening of 8 January with the clear intention of causing, at the very least, serious harm to someone as they prowled the streets of Leyton looking for their target – which unluckily for Jaden became him.
“His attackers’ intentions were obvious from their face and hand coverings, an attempt to hide from any cameras, and the large knives they were carrying.
“After deliberately ramming Jaden off his moped, his attackers did not think twice about carrying out a savage, frenzied attack on him – stabbing him nine times in seven seconds while he laid defenceless on the ground. They fled the scene and left Jaden to slowly bleed to death in the middle of the road.
“His attackers dumped the car nearby and were captured on CCTV calmly walking away as though nothing had happened.
“They tried to destroy any evidence linking them to the attack, but they failed, and officers were soon able to link Majdouline to Jaden’s murder and gather enough evidence to charge him. I’m grateful that the jury agreed with the overwhelming evidence against Majdouline and found him guilty of the cold blooded murder of a 14-year-old child.
“However, our work is not over yet. We know that there were five people in that black Mercedes. Rest assured, our investigation is continuing around the clock and will continue to do so until all those responsible for Jaden’s murder are brought to justice.
“I’d urge anyone with any information about this terrible incident, no matter how insignificant you think it might be, to get in touch with us. Perhaps you could not speak to us at the time for a number of different reasons, but circumstances change and your information could help bring Jaden’s killers to justice.
“If you do not feel that you can speak to us, then why not contact an independent charity such as Crimestoppers or Fearless where you can provide information anonymously.”
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