Police hunt 'four young black men' over shooting of 'Black Panther of Oxford' Sasha Johnson: Gang 'wearing dark clothes' burst into Peckham party at 3am and opened fire - as officers reiterate it was NOT 'targeted at victim'
- Sasha Johnson's political party are rejecting idea the 'Black Panther of Oxford' was caught in crossfire
- Police say a gang of four men ran into a garden and shot into crowd of partygoers before fleeing the scene
- Mother of two is fighting for her life following the attack in Peckham, south-east London at 3am on Sunday
- Scotland Yard is insisting there is nothing to suggest the 27-year-old was the target of the shooting
- Home Office blasts 'very irresponsible' Diane Abbott for stoking 'tensions' by insisting she was shot deliberately
- Taking the Initiative Party have slammed police claims that threats against Ms Johnson were not 'credible' Sasha Johnson was shot in the head by a gang of four young black men who stormed into the garden of a Peckham all-day party and opened fire - but there is no evidence the BLM activist was the intended target, Scotland Yard said today.
Commander Alison Heydari has made an appeal for anyone who knows the identity of the shooters to come forward and help police 'bring them to justice' as the mother-of-two fights for her life in hospital.
The Met spoke out after Miss Johnson's political party and Labour's Diane Abbott have been accused of 'inflaming divides' by insisting she may have been shot because she 'stood up for racial justice'. A Home Office source told MailOnline today: 'It is very irresponsible and risks increasing tensions in the community.'
The self-styled 'Black Panther of Oxford', 27, who called for the police to be defunded after the murder of George Floyd in the US last summer, needed emergency surgery following the attack in south-east London in the early hours of Sunday morning.
Speaking outside Scotland Yard today Commander Heydari said: 'We have established that she was in a party in Peckham. At about 3am a group of four black men dressed in dark clothing entered the garden of the property and discharged a firearm. They had left the scene before officers arrived.
'We're aware of Sasha's involvement in the Black Lives Matter movement and the concern this will cause some communities. But at this time we have no information that suggests that she was subject to a targeted attack. We're also not aware of any threats to her life prior to this incident'.
She added: 'This was a shocking incident that has left a young woman with very serious injuries.Our thoughts are with the family of Sasha Johnson who are being supported by specially trained officers. We have a team of detectives trying to find those responsible. The suspects are black, men and were in dark clothing. There is no suggestion they knew Sasha. There is someone out there who knows who carried out this attack and these people do not deserve their protection'.
Sasha's Taking the Initiative Party has refused to believe Met assurances alleged death threats weren't credible as they described receiving emails and social media messages from people 'celebrating Sasha's attack, messages wishing she dies, calling her a racist, and wishing better luck to the shooter next time for not killing her'. They held a vigil in the park next to the South London hospital where she is in a critical condition with supporters questioning why she was the only one shot if she wasn't the target.
In a lengthy statement first published on Instagram, the party said: 'The irony is in the fact that the police have stated there is no clear evidence that Sasha was the target of the attack, and that there are no credible death threats made towards her; however, how have the police come to this conclusion without being able to speak to Sasha regarding the death threats and investigate?
'Do the police know who the target of the attack was, in order to conclude that Sasha wasn't? How does one manage to shoot someone in the head accidentally? Surely, to end up in hospital having sustained a bullet shot to the head, makes a death threat more credible.'
Labour's Diane Abbott has been accused of 'inflaming divides' by insisting Sasha may have been shot because she 'stood up for racial justice' - when the police say there is no evidence to back this claim up
Sasha Johnson, at a meeting point in Hyde Park in London during a Black Lives Matter demonstration in June 2020
Four black men, dressed in dark clothing, entered the garden and opened fire, hitting Sasha in the head. Police don't believe she was the intended victim TTIP also slammed Imarn Ayton, founder of the UK Black Reformist Movement, for telling the BBC that the attack was as a result of gang crime rather than a hate crime or a targeted attack. The party claimed Ms Ayton is not a friend of Ms Johnson's and 'had no authority to give a statement on the incident'.
Ms Ayton had said Ms Johnson, famed for wearing black military uniform at protests including a stab-proof-style vest, was caught up in a dispute between two rival gangs - and was not shot because of her activism.
'It was wrong place, wrong time. I do not believe she was the target', she said.
Around 50 people held a vigil for Ms Johnson and said prayers under a bandstand in Ruskin Park, Lambeth as one friend said: 'She is a light in the darkness and she continues to shine' and added they had been 'blessed' by her smile as they chanted for her.
Online activist page Justice for Black Lives asked supporters to 'show support for her recovery' and 'take a stand against senseless violence' at the event, while photos showed supporters crying and embracing each other as they gathered outside.
One neighbour in south-east London earlier told MailOnline that she heard 'two shots' and then the sound of 'screeching' tyres at around 3am on Sunday. Forensics teams have sealed off the property and are searching the area for bullet casings and the weapon.
Ms Ayton told the BBC: 'As far as we're aware she [Sasha] was at a party and there was a rival gang that may have heard about a person being there that they didn't feel comfortable with, or trusted, so they resorted to driving past and shooting into a garden. And one of those shots obviously hit Sasha Johnson. But I don't believe she was the intended target'.
She added: 'This incident is more related to rival gangs than to her activism', adding she believed there was 'some kind of dispute between two different groups'.
Sasha is in a critical condition in hospital after emergency surgery as police hunt for the gunman after the Met insisted there is nothing to suggest it was a targeted attack on her. Photographs of the crime scene show a large marquee and several gazebos were put up in the back garden for the party.
The lawn is still covered in discarded drinks bottles and what appears to be blue medical gloves and PPE.
A neighbour, who lives near the house, told MailOnline: 'I heard two shots. There was about three seconds between each one and I heard a car screeching off.
'A woman then screamed and shouted the word 'help'. I was too frightened to look out the window. My husband is blind and he was really worried about what was going on too, he was almost having a panic attack. I knew they were gunshots straight away. It's terrifying that a shooting can happen virtually on my doorstep.'
Police investigating the shooting of Sasha Johnson have recovered a mountain bike.
A local said: 'I came out of my house about 8.30am on Sunday and the police had sealed off the road. There was a dark coloured mountain bike left on the street behind the police tape.
'The officers then took it away. I don't know what significance it holds.
'The shooting followed an all day party at one of the houses by the railway arch. My daughter walked past it about 4pm on Saturday and apparently it continued until late on into the night. 'I didn't hear any shots or any shouting. The first I knew that something had happened was when I stepped out of my front door to go out.'
Home Office blasts 'very irresponsible' Diane Abbott for stoking 'tensions' by insisting 'Black Panther of Oxford' Sasha Johnson was shot 'because she stood up for racial justice'
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