Crime Immemorial

Fourteen-year-old Benji Stanley lived with his mother in Moss Side, Manchester, England. On Saturday, January 2nd, 1993, Benji was waiting in line with his friend Neville “Tito” Gunning at Alvino’s Pattie and Dumplin takeout restaurant on Western Street when suddenly, an unknown assailant approached and blasted Benji with a shotgun. The victim was killed instantly.

Gun violence in that area of Manchester was at an all-time high, due largely to the rivalry between the Gooch Close Gang and the Pepperhill Mob. Though Benji himself was not found to be involved in any gang activity, police suspected he had been shot in a case of mistaken identity.

The first line of inquiry explored was that the intended target of the killing had actually been Benji’s fifteen-year-old friend Tito, who he was standing next to when he was murdered. Benji was wearing Tito’s jacket and was riding Tito’s bicycle, so this theory made sense, but further investigation proved it had no merit.

In 2011, though, authorities announced that they believed the actual target of the hit was Winston Brownlow, a member of the Pepperhill Mob (whose name later changed to the Doddingtons). Brownlow had been shot in the hand outside the Pepperhill pub in 1991 by someone believed to be involved with the Gooch Close Gang, and it should be noted that Brownlow did resemble Benji Stanley quite a bit. Brownlow’s mother even allegedly told Benji’s mother Denise that her (Brownlow’s) son had been the target.

In 1997, Winston Brownlow was sentenced to seven years for conspiracy to supply cocaine.

Benji Stanley’s death became something of a rallying cry in Manchester, highlighting the plight of the innocent people caught in the crossfire of the city’s gang wars.

Despite years of thorough investigation, no one has ever been charged with the tragic murder of the fourteen-year-old, and his mother has all but lost hope that the killer will ever be caught.