An eyewitness to a deadly shooting has described the moment his close friend was gunned down in Ilford.

Tariq Asad, 19, was sitting in the backseat of a car on Woodlands Road, Ilford, on March 21 this year, when an unknown gunman shot Abdi Sheikhey through the passenger seat window.

Now Sami Omar, 21, and Suleman Mohamed, 20, both of Kingston Road, Ilford and Jordi Kibusi, 20, of Wisteria Close, Ilford, are on trial at the Old Bailey accused of murder.

They all deny the charges.

Yesterday, Mr Asad said he considered Abdi, who he had known since he was young, a good friend.

When he was asked about what he recalled from the night, the 19-year-old said he found it stressful to recall details.

He said: “I didn’t see the actual shooting as I was on my phone.

“I heard the loud bangs and I saw a flash and I immediately got out of the car and ran.”

Mr Asad hid behind a van further up the road for ten minutes before calling a friend to pick him up.

Following the shooting, Mr Asad said he didn’t contact the police to make a statement about the night.

Under cross examination, he said that he had been “too traumatised” to speak about it but visited Forest Gate police station with his sister and dad on April 18.

He said that he told the police that he couldn’t think of any reason why Abdi, who had allegedly been involved in a knife fight with one of of the defendants the night before, had been targeted.

When he was asked if he knew Abdi by the names “Rider” or “Rage”, he said he had never heard his friend use that name.

Further details were also given about attempts by paramedics at the scene to resuscitate Abdi after he was shot.

Whilst attempting CPR, the crew of medics recovered a bullet embedded in the 19-year-old’s heart, revealed consultant forensic pathologist Dr Benjamin Swift.

Overall, he concluded that Abdi had been shot five times, and that two of the shots caused him to sustain fatal injuries.

All three deny the charges and the trial continues.