Abdul-Latif Pouget was sitting on a moped near Farringdon station in central London when Oguzcan Dereli pulled up in a car and attacked him with a machete
Chilling CCTV footage has captured the horrifying moment a murderer leapt from a car to fatally stab an aristocrat’s grandson with a machete in a 13-second attack.
Abdul-Latif Pouget, 20, was perched on a moped adorned with an L-plate near Farringdon station in central London when Oguzcan Dereli, 27, pulled up in a blue Ford Focus estate on October 18 last year. Upon seeing Dereli brandishing a large blade, Pouget attempted to speed away but the assailant caught up with him and stabbed him as the scooter toppled over during the struggle.
The victim was the grandson of Baron Bouget, and his great-grandfather was banker George de Vere Drummond, who was the godson of King George VI. The Pouget family is connected to Chateau Pouget, a vineyard in the Margaux appellation of Bordeaux, France.
Known affectionately as ‘Abz’, the victim was a talented footballer who played left wing for Zaza FC in the Barnet Sunday Football League, the Old Bailey was told.
He was sat on his moped in Back Hill at the time of the attack. Pouget battled for his life for three days before succumbing to his injuries in hospital. Dereli, who was employed as a cannabis dealer at the time, denied the charges but was found guilty by an Old Bailey jury of murder and possession of an offensive weapon.
The man has a criminal record of 39 previous convictions and was sentenced to 18 months in prison in 2018 for a series of mobile phone thefts in north London while riding pillion on the back of a moped. Pouget’s brother, Badruddin, turned to address Dereli in the dock as he delivered a victim impact statement from the witness box.
Badruddin said: “Mr Dereli, when Abz was nine you had your first conviction. When Abz was collecting medals you were collecting bank cards and snatching phones from strangers. You were caught hiding under a mattress.”
Badruddin described his brother as “a young man who, unlike you, was loved for who he was, not feared for what he might do”. He added: “I hope that justice might speak for Abz now since you never let him speak again.”
The victim’s mother, Kawsar Pouget, said in a statement that her son was “kind, respectful, polite and humble”. She added: “He was a talented and gifted footballer who was a role model to those younger than him. He was young intelligent and full of promise”
Mrs Pouget said her son, who was one of seven children, had hoped to become a professional footballer.
“He bought warmth and laughter to every room. His murder shattered the natural order of things and has broken something deep within us. Every member of the family carries this loss. Our family gatherings now taken place at the graveside,” Mrs Pouget added.
The motive behind the brutal murder remains a mystery, although the prosecution suggested that Dereli was attempting to snatch Pouget’s mobile phone as he sat on his bike. There were also whispers of a disagreement over an unpaid debt.
Dereli defended himself in court, claiming that Pouget had falsely accused him of theft and he had exited the car to confront him, wielding the machete for self-defence. Pouget had parked his moped at Back Hill at 9.27pm on the fateful day last year. A minute later, the Ford Focus estate driven by Dereli made its way onto the hill from Clerkenwell Road.
Prosecutor Danny Robinson recounted: “As he left the car he had a large machete in his right hand. He ran straight over to Mr Pouget who was still sat on his moped. He struck him with the machete and then stabbed him with it to his right thigh. The stab wound severed an artery causing instant massive blood loss and Mr Pouget collapsed on the pavement. The defendant got back in his car with the machete and drove off leaving Mr Pouget fighting for his life on the floor.”
The entire incident was reportedly over in 13 seconds.
Robinson continued: “Members of the public and one of Mr Pouget’s friends tried to help him as did paramedics and police officers. He was taken to Royal London Hospital but despite the best efforts of all those involved in his care he died at 11.15am on October 21.”
At the time of the murder, Dereli’s partner had recently given birth but he had never seen the child, claiming he was “scared”. He was with another woman when he checked into the Easy Hotel on Old Street on the evening of October 19.
Dereli was arrested there the following morning, but the murder weapon was never recovered. The court heard his family of eleven were Kurdish asylum seekers who all lived in a three bedroom council flat. His father was unemployed and his mother was too ill to work.
Dereli, of Alexander Road, Holloway, denied the charges, but was convicted of murder and having an offensive weapon.
Passing sentence Judge Sarah Whitehouse said: “I am not satisfied this was a murder carried out in the circumstances of a robbery. We shall probably never know why you decided to get out of your car and run over and stab Mr Pouget.”
However, the judge added there had been rumours of a disagreement over a debt. The judge further added: “Some of the rumours were that you and Mr Pouget had an altercation that very evening in which he had got the better of you and your friends had encouraged you to go out and seek revenge. I am satisfied you had formed the intention to cause him really serious bodily harm when you stopped and got out of your car at speed, carrying that machete.
“Your actions caused incalculable distress to Abdul-Latif Pouget’s family.”
Donning a smart suit and tie, Dereli displayed no emotion as he was sentenced and didn’t glance back at the crowded public gallery as he was escorted to the cells.
Detective Chief Inspector Lucie Card, who spearheaded the Met’s investigation, said: “My thoughts and that of my team remain with Abdul’s family, a much loved brother, friend and neighbour.
“A young man has tragically died in a senseless and brutal way. I can only hope that this sentence can go some way in providing a sense of justice to Abdul’s family.”