A murderer has been jailed for 27 years after he stabbed a man to death in Leytonstone and fled to Sweden. Sabajet Shuti, 31, of Upney Lane in Barking was sentenced to life in prison at Southwark Crown Court on June 27 for murdering 27-year-old Lumturi Zeqja.
The court heard how Shuti travelled to Folkestone and took a ferry to France following the attack on October 16, 2022 before he was arrested almost a year later in Sweden on October 3, 2023 and extradited back to Britain.
Shuti launched his fatal attack outside a cafe on Church Lane in Leytonstone. Lumturi was standing with his friend when Shuti, and his brother Emirlion Shuti, 30, arrived at 10.40pm in two cars.
The brothers went to a separate café but shortly after Emirlion Shuti returned to one of the cars and began to drive it erratically along the road, revving the engine and causing a disturbance.
Lumturi’s friend approached Emirlion and told him to stop but instead of doing this, Emirlion got out of the car and spoke to his brother and others who were outside the neighbouring café. The situation quickly escalated after Emirlion Shuti threw a punch at Lumturi’s friend. During the ensuing altercation Sabajet Shuti produced a knife and stabbed Lumturi twice, and his friend once.
Both Shuti brothers ran off, leaving Lumturi dying on the pavement. Paramedics attended but despite their efforts they could not save him. His friend was taken to hospital for emergency surgery and thankfully survived the attack.
Detectives then launched a murder probe, piecing together CCTV and mobile phone footage to get a full picture of what happened.
The day after the murder, Sabajet Shuti made plans to leave the UK. He changed his appearance by shaving off his beard and travelling across the English Channel to France.
A warrant for his arrest was issued about a year after the attack, and he was arrested by Swedish police shortly afterwards on October 3, 2023. In the intervening period, detectives had arrested and charged Emirlion Shuti for his role in the attack.
‘Shuti had clear intent to cause significant harm if chance arose’
Detective Inspector Brett Hagen who led the investigation said: “Sabajet Shuti went to great lengths to try and evade justice, fleeing the country and regularly changing location in an attempt to avoid being arrested.
“However, his efforts were in vain as while he was on the run, our team of tenacious detectives had built a file of evidence and, working in liaison with international law enforcement colleagues, the net closed in on him.
“The level of violence Sabejet Shuti used was completely unnecessary – he went out that night armed with a knife so had clear intent of causing someone significant harm if the chance arose.
“His actions cost Lumturi Zeqja his life and has caused untold pain to his family and friends. While nothing I can say can alleviate their suffering, I hope they can take some small measure of comfort in seeing the Shuti brothers held to account for their actions.”
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