A grieving mother has accused the Metropolitan Police of laziness and said jailing war criminals is easier than dealing with the force over the death of her son.
Sven Badzak was killed in February 2021 as he stopped at Waitrose in northwest London to buy a salmon and cream cheese bagel.
Six gang members used at least three knives to stab the aspiring lawyer four times before kicking and punching him in the street in a case of mistaken identity.
Rashid Gedel, 22, of Fenman Gardens, Ilford, and Shiroh Ambersley, 23, of Matthews Close, Wembley, were convicted of murder on July 7. The pair were also convicted of GBH against a then 16-year-old boy, a friend of Sven’s who raised the alarm.
Harvey Canavan, 19, of Walterton Road, Maida Vale, pleaded guilty to Sven’s manslaughter. All three are due to sentenced at the Old Bailey on Thursday (August 3).
But Sven’s mum Jasna Badzak has voiced her anger with three suspects still free.
Mrs Badzak, who escaped her native Yugoslavia and became a protected witness in trials of two war criminals at the Hague, told The Times: “Putting criminals behind bars in the Hague was a piece of cake compared with dealing with the Metropolitan police.”
The 51-year-old told the same publication she felt pleased there was “finally some small semblance of justice”.
She added: “The Metropolitan Police are not doing their job. I am paralysed in bed from all the stress they have caused me. Each arrest was like climbing Everest.”
The Met Police said: “Officers have made a number of arrests, in addition to those charged with Mr Badzak’s murder, and the inquiry continues. Officers are determined to bring all those responsible for the death of Sven Badzak to justice.
“Diligent and thorough inquiries focused mainly on CCTV and mobile phone work identified the three defendants.
“In February 2022 detectives issued images of two unknown men they wanted to speak to in connection with the murder. That appeal still stands.
“One suspect has been identified as Lior Agbayan, 20, who had fled the country before he was identified as a suspect. A warrant has been issued for his arrest.”
On today’s sentencing, Mrs Badzak told The Times: “The only sentence I will accept and will be right will be life, meaning life. I am living a life sentence.
“Sven’s life doesn’t exist any more, he was 22 and a half. Remember yourself at 22 and a half, you have just begun living. He was a child.”
Mrs Badzak, a former Conservative Party activist, attended the Old Bailey trial by video link after it was delayed due to industrial action by barristers last summer.
Prosecutor Anthony Orchard KC told the court the victims had been targeted in a “gang-style attack” over what the killers saw as their drugs territory.
Both defendants were identified on CCTV and admitted being at the scene, but they denied carrying knives that day and claimed they were only in the area to sell drugs.
The court heard Gedel had four previous convictions for carrying blades dating back to 2014 and on his arrest in March 2021, a hunting knife was seized from his bedroom wardbrobe.
Ambersley also had a conviction for possession of a blade, two offences of threatening with an offensive weapon in a public place and affray as well as possession of drugs.
