David Nyamupfukudza who has been jailed for life for shooting aspiring athlete Sylvester Akapalara

A teenager has been sentenced to murdering an aspiring athlete in Peckham, south London.

Sylvester Akapalara who was shot dead in Peckham, south London

David Nyamupfukudza, 19, was told he must serve at least 26 years in jail for the murder of Sylvester Akapalara in December 2010.

Mr Akapalara was a budding athlete who was living with a foster family in New Cross, south-east London.

The 17-year-old was shot dead on the Pelican Estate in Peckham.

His two friends were stabbed and the attackers also tried to shoot them but the gun jammed.

Passing sentence at the Old Bailey today, Judge Timothy Pontius said: “It matters very little for the purposes of sentencing why Sylvester Akapalara was shot dead at the end of 2010, but it seems likely that he was just one of many victims, mostly in their teens, who have been targeted over the last few years in acts of mindless and appalling violence simply because of their membership or assumed membership of an opposing gang.

“Young men and mere boys for whatever reason - either social deprivation, unemployment, simple boredom or arrogant adolescent bravado - seem to be attracted by the idea of being part of a group that does not recognise and still less observes accepted boundaries of decent human behaviour within the communities in which they live.

“Now yet another mother and also an adoptive family have been left desolate and distraught.”

He said Mr Akapalara, who was a member of Herne Hill Harriers athletics club, was a “promising young athlete of remarkable ability”.

The judge went on: “You were by the jury’s unanimous finding a willing participant in that act of cold-blooded murder.

“I’m able to accept that there was no specific targeting of Sylvester Akapalara as opposed to any other remember of a rival gang.

“Rather, he happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time by the most tragic of circumstances.”

In mitigation, the court heard that Nyamupfukudza was not in possession of the gun until the group met at the estate.

He had also only just turned 18 at the time of the murder.

As he was taken down, Nyamupfukudza called out: “I just hope you know you’ve prosecuted and sentenced an innocent man. God will see me out of this.”

Nyamupfukudza was given a 22 year sentence to run concurrently for the attempted murder of Mr Akapalara’s friend.