Twenty-two-year-old Damian Cope was described by those who knew him as an ardent football enthusiast and an aspiring DJ who had recently completed a sound engineering course. At around one a.m. on July 29th, 2002, Damian was leaving the trendy Browns nightclub on Great Queen Street in Holborn, central London when he was shot in the stomach at close range.
Damian managed to stagger approximately fifty yards back into the club before collapsing. He was rushed to the hospital but died six hours later from his injuries.
Witnesses reported seeing six people near the scene who fled in three vehicles—a black BMW, a silver BMW, and a Peugeot—after the shooting. Detectives returned to the area a week later, leafleting clubbers in the early hours in an attempt to jog memories and gather more information. A £10,000 reward was also later offered, and CCTV footage was released in the hope of identifying those involved.
Police soon identified a prime suspect: Andrew Wanogho (also spelled Wanoghu), a twenty-five-year-old from Deptford, southeast London, known in some circles as “Sparks.” In September 2003, Wanogho was charged with Damian Cope’s murder.
The case against him relied heavily on a claimed “dying declaration.” According to two of Damian’s friends, the victim named Wanogho as his shooter while lying injured. One friend provided the name to police, though the other did not. However, both witnesses ultimately refused to testify in court.
Medical evidence further undermined the prosecution. Two doctors independently assessed that the severity of Damian’s abdominal wound made it highly unlikely he would have been capable of coherent speech approximately seven minutes after being shot. In August 2004, the murder charge against Wanogho was dropped at the Old Bailey, and he was acquitted.
Wanogho himself met a violent end. On April 8th, 2006, he was shot in the back and heart in Brockley, southeast London, and bled to death in the street. He had reportedly been lured to the location. A man was later convicted in connection with arranging his murder from prison.
In the years following Damian Cope’s murder, his mother Lucy became a prominent campaigner against gun crime, founding Mothers Against Guns and holding vigils, including one outside Downing Street. Tragically, Damian was the second son Lucy had lost to violence; her other son had been murdered four years earlier.
As of this writing in May 2026, the slaying of Damian Cope is still unsolved.
Crime Immemorial 