A Croydon man has been jailed for 30 years after he was found guilty of stabbing a 24-year-old to death over a designer bag earlier this year.
Samuel Odupitan of Longheath Gardens in Croydon was sentenced to 30 years behind bars after he was found guilty of murdering 24-year-old Tyler Roye during the early hours of Wednesday, (February 26) in Bywood Avenue, Croydon.
Tyler worked as a hotel concierge in Stratford at the time of his death.
He was stabbed five times in the back and abdomen, treated at the scene and later on arrival at hospital, but he died in the operating theatre.
Tyler had finished work on the night he was fatally stabbed around 11pm, and got on a tram at East Croydon Station, entering the same carriage as Odupitan, who travelled from West Croydon.
CCTV footage showed Odupitan beginning to stalk Tyler by moving closer to him, first inside the moving train and later after they both left the tram at the Arena stop.
A spokesperson for the Met Police described what happened next:
“Within minutes, Tyler – who had just called his girlfriend - was approached by Odupitan. She heard Tyler say ‘Bro, bro..’ before the line went dead.
“Odupitan stabbed Tyler five times before running from the scene.
“After the incident Tyler managed to get to the nearby address of a friend, where he raised the alarm.
“He collapsed inside the property. One of the wounds to his torso was 15 centimetres deep and had cut through his lung and aorta.”
They added that he had been carrying a box of doughnuts to give to his family.
Meanwhile, Odupitan was also convicted of four robberies in south London in September and October 2019, which saw him rob four victims – including a woman – of their watches.
The three male victims were assaulted during the offences, with a knife used in one of them.
“Odupitan is an evil predator and opportunist who preyed on my son for a bag. He robbed my son of his precious life.
“He is a danger to society and has no regard for human life,” Tyler’s mother Cecilia Smith said.
Detective Inspector Mel Pressley agreed, describing Odupitan as an “extremely dangerous and heartless” man.
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules hereComments are closed on this article