Teen gets minimum of 13 years for murder of Balham schoolboy

Murderer Danny Joseph Drake can finally be named as the killer of Chestnut Grove Academy pupil Alim Uddin, who he lured on to a Brixton estate before viciously stabbing him to death.

Drake of Mackie House, Mackie Road, Herne Hill, pleaded guilty to murder at the Old Bailey on Wednesday, October 22. He was jailed for life today [November 18] and ordered to serve a minimum of 13 years.

He attacked Mr Uddin at the Tilford block of flats in Brixton, on May 4 this year, following a dispute about the sale of a £90 bike.

Drake lured him to the top floor of the building, promising to return him money he had paid for a bike he never received.

A post-mortem examination found Alim was stabbed four times in his chest, including one to his heart. He was also stabbed once in the lower back, shoulder and thigh. Police were called but Alim died in hospital.

Drake was traced CCTV by detectives who found he had fled to a relative’s address in the Tooting area.

He even asked for directions to a launderette to try to clean Alim’s blood off his clothing. He ended up washing the bloodied garments in a bath instead.

He was arrested at the relative’s home in Tooting less than 12 hours after the murder, and forensic tests soon confirmed it was Alim’s blood on the clothes and in the bath.

Detective Inspector Reid said: “There is no indication Alim knew how dangerous and fatal the meeting would be. I believe he went with the honest intention of retrieving the money he had paid for a bike he never received.

“I can only hope today’s sentence goes some small way to bringing justice to Alim’s family.”

His headteacher Margaret Peacock described him as a bright young man with a promising future.

She said: “He was ambitious and very keen to build a successful life for himself. In school he was a popular, engaging student who went out of his way to help others and was a volunteer reader with younger students.”