A British Louis Vuitton model has been found guilty of the murder of a fellow male model Harry Uzoka.
According to reports, George Koh, 24, killed Harry in January 2018 after he and Uzoka, 25, got into a heated argument on social media.
Prosecutors claim the Koh had become jealous of Uzoka - a growing presence in the world of fashion - after he had signed to Premier Model Management and began modelling for the likes of GQ and Zara. Uzoka had also just landed a film role and was close friends with the high profile British model Jordan Dunn.
Dunn, 28, was one of many people to pay tribute to Uzoka following his murder, tweeting: “Rest in Paradise Young King.” Clothing retailer Everlane, who Uzoka had worked with, also paid respect to the young model, tweeting:
“We’re deeply saddened to hear about Harry Uzoka’s passing."
“He was a wonderful model but even more so a good person and a pleasure to work with.
“There’s so much more behind the person you’ve seen in our campaigns.
“Thank you, Harry, for being such a great person. Rest in peace.”
Before his death, Uzoka had called Koh a "fake" and asked him to stop "copying him."
“Leave my name out of your mouth, it’s that simple, I’ve never spoken bad of you in any way, so this is wild,” Uzoka wrote in a message to Koh shown in court.
Koh claimed that he had slept with Ruby Campbell - Uzoka's girlfriend - and the two decided to settle matters in person.
“Koh claimed he knew Uzoka well and then said that he had sex with Uzoka’s girlfriend and that was the reason why they no longer talked,” Prosecutor Richard Horwell QC said in court Monday according to BBC.
“Where you I’ll come there n we can fight bring ur friends with u,” Koh told Uzoka.
Uzoka then responded, saying: “Come Shepherd’s Bush.”
Upon arrival at the London location, Uzoka was hounded down by Koh and his friends, with the chase being recorded on surveillance cameras at the scene.
Uzoka, who had brought a dumbbell bar with him to the fight, was then stabbed repeatedly with a knife and died on the pavement in front of his house. According to Koh, he decided to carry the knife as self-defence.
In a statement at the time of his arrest, Koh said:
“I did not willfully take the life of Harry Uzoka. I was in fear for my life, Mr Uzoka was upset with me and had made threats of violence towards me.
“During the altercation, he had a metal pole in his hand and wanted to strike me, I acted in self-defence because I feared that he would kill me.
“I had no intention to stab him in the chest, I was on the floor when he fell onto me.
“I maintain that my actions were reasonable given the circumstances.”
Koh and his two friends, Jonathan Okigbo, 24, and Merse Dikanda, 24, were all found guilty in the trial. Koh and Dikanda, who brought a machete with him to the fight, were found guilty of murder. Okigbo, who was unarmed during the attack, was found guilty of manslaughter for his part in the murder.
All three will be sentenced on September 21.
