Turkish gang boss linked to shooting of Hackney girl is assassinated
A gang boss suspected of being linked to a drive-by shooting that left a nine-year-old girl fighting for her life in east London has been assassinated in Moldova.
Izzet Eren, leader of the Tottenham Turks, was shot seven times as he sat outside a cafe in the capital Chisinau on Wednesday.
The 41-year-old is said to have been killed by a gunman riding an electric scooter and wearing a helmet.
Police in the UK are reportedly investigating a possible connection to the shooting in Dalston in May, when a girl and three men aged 26, 37, and 42 were wounded when a gunman opened fire near a restaurant on Kingsland High Street.
The Telegraph understands the girl, whose family come from Kerala in southern India, is believed to have suffered a gunshot wound to the head and remains in a stable but critical condition in hospital.
She was having dinner with her family at Evin’s restaurant in Hackney when shots were fired from a motorbike.
One of the intended targets is believed to be a member of the Hackney Bombers who had previously been shot in the neck by a possible Tottenham Turks member.
A Scotland Yard spokesman said: “The Metropolitan Police are aware of reports of the death of a 41-year-old man in the Moldovan capital Chisinau.
“At this time the name of the man who died has not been officially confirmed by Moldovan authorities.”
Professional attack
Moldova’s interior ministry said that a convicted Turkish drug dealer seeking asylum was shot dead while sitting on a cafe terrace in Chisinau’s Riscani district.
The gunman escaped and police chief Viorel Cernauteanu said the shooting bore the hallmarks of a highly professional attack.
Police in the UK previously said Eren was a senior member of the Tottenham Turks, which had a long-running feud with the rival Hackney Turks.
Eren was jailed in October 2015 for 21 years after being caught carrying a loaded pistol and a machine gun in north London while allegedly on his way to carry out a shooting.
While serving his sentence he was transferred to a prison in Turkey in August 2019.
He absconded from the jail a month later before being arrested in Moldova in 2022.
Met Commander Fiona Mallen said at the time that extradition proceedings were under way but Eren was reportedly later released.
He is believed to have been involved in masterminding his crime group’s operations in the UK while on the run, according to the Mirror.