A Jamaican heroin dealer jailed for the murder of his ‘best friend’ in South London has died in prison 14 years into his life sentence, according to the prison watchdog. Marlon Kelly, 46, died at HMP Swaleside on the Isle of Sheppey in Kent on June 13, reports the Prisons and Probation Ombudsman, 11 years before he was due to complete the minimum 25 year tariff on his prison term.
Kelly, known as ‘Wrecker’ on the streets, was first imprisoned over a shooting in August 2001, when he was aged 18. During a trial, jurors heard Kelly was seen by witnesses to repeatedly fire a handgun at a fleeing male in Battersea, South West London. Kelly denied any involvement but was sentenced to six years in jail for possession of a firearm with intent to cause violence, reports Surrey Live.
After his conviction for the shooting, the UK Border Agency tried to have Kelly deported back to his native Jamaica, but the decision was overturned by the courts on appeal. This meant Kelly was able to continue operating in South London, where he went on to murder 31-year-old Anthony Gray in May 2010.
In 2011, Kelly was branded an ‘abomination to society’ after he was convicted of Gray’s murder. That trial heard how Kelly, then aged 32, knifed Mr Gray in the neck from behind during an argument after a man visited the flat to buy heroin. Kelly told police he awoke to find Mr Gray dying, then tried to flee to Wales with £2,500 in cash the next day.
At the time, Mr Gray’s mother Hermine Caeser said it was ‘hurtful beyond belief’ to hear Kelly describe himself as Mr Gray’s ‘best friend’. “Having to sit through a trial has made me realise what a ruthless and heartless person the defendant is,” Ms Caeser said, “As far as I am concerned he is an abomination to society.”
On its website, the PPO says an investigation into Kelly’s death is ‘in progress’.
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