Spanish-Brazilian Marcus Arduini Monzo has been charged with 10 offences following an alleged April rampage through Hainault, north east London, after killing his cat
A man accused of murdering a 14-year-old schoolboy with a Japanese sword allegedly killed and skinned his own cat first, a court has heard.
Marcus Arduini Monzo is alleged to have targeted 14-year-old Daniel Anjorin, who was “simply walking to school, minding his own business” in Hainault, north east London on April 30 last year. The Old Bailey heard Monzo “snuffed out” the teen’s life “in an instant”, using “severe” and “extreme” force to inflict a “devastating and unsurvivable” injury on him. Monzo, who is charged with the attempted murders of four others and injuring of a police inspector, allegedly killed and skinned his own cat at home beforehand.
The court heard that a search of Spanish-Brazilian national Monzo’s Newham home yielded evidence of a skinned and deboned cat, as well as the presence of cannabis. While opening proceedings on Wednesday, Tom Little KC said that police found a brown-handled knife during a subsequent search of his van that had traces of non-human blood.
He told the jury: “A sample of blood staining was taken from the blade which indicated that it was not human blood. It is perhaps worth noting in that context that the evidence reveals that the defendant killed and skinned his own cat shortly before the matters that you are considering.”
Prosecutors argued today that Monzo went on a crime spree “brought about by self-induced intoxication in the form of drugs” which started when he targeted Donato Iwule. Mr Little said he had nearly killed Mr Iwule when, at 6.51am on April 30 he drove into him in his grey Transit van at speed.
Ring doorbell footage showed the moment the man was sent “catapulting” through the fence of a house, with Monzo emerging at telling his first victim: “I will kill you”. CCTV played to the jury captured Mr Iwule shouting at his attacker: “I don’t know you, I don’t know you.”
Monzo chillingly replied: “I don’t care, I will kill you.”
The court heard it was “remarkable” Mr Iwule was not killed on the initial impact, and he was able to escape his alleged attacker after he was hit in the neck with a sword. Monzo is alleged to have then “slain” Daniel, inflicting a “devastating and unsurvivable chopping injury to the left hand side of his face and neck” as he travelled to school.
Mr little said the wound was “essentially a near-decapitation”, with emergency services arriving at the scene after the alleged attack. PC Yasmin Mechem-Whitfield pursued the defendant, still armed, through a series of alleyways in a residential neighbourhood.
The court heard that he struck the police officer three times with the 60cm blade, inflicting “significant” injuries, before entering a nearby house through a backdoor and walking upstairs into the bedroom of a sleeping couple. He is accused of attacking them as their daughter slept in bed next to them.
Mr Little argued the two were spared “because in fact the four-year-old child woke up and started to cry”. He is then alleged to have then exited the property and was backed into a garage by still pursuing police. He was eventually apprehended after allegedly striking Inspector Moloy Campbell with the sword and attempting to mount another desperate police.
Monzo is charged with 10 offences in total, including the murder of Daniel Anjorin, four counts for the alleged attempted murders of Donato Iwule, Sindy Arias, Henry De Los Rios Polania and PC Yasmin Margaret Mechem-Whitfield, a count of wounding with intent, and two counts of possessing an offensive weapon.
Monzo – who has no previous convictions – has pleaded guilty to two counts of possessing an offensive weapon – a katana sword and a tanto katana sword. He denies the remaining eight.
The trial continues.