Nigerian-born music manager stabbed to death in UK over £300k watch

Emmanuel Odunlami, a music manager of Nigerian descent, was fatally stabbed in the UK because he was in possession of a fake designer watch estimated to be worth £300,000.

The central criminal court of England and Wales, the Old Bailey, recently heard evidence that Odunlami was ambushed by three robbers after hosting a party to celebrate his birthday.

The 32-year-old music manager was allegedly attacked on May 1, 2022, in London after leaving the Haz restaurant close to St. Paul’s Cathedral.

Security guard Kavindu Hettiarachchi is alleged to have informed Odunlami’s attackers that he was sporting a Patek Philippe Nautilus watch.

During the court session, Duncan Atkinson KC, the prosecutor, said it is believed that the watch “may have not been genuine.”

He added that the robbers, however, treated the item as though it was genuine.

“Sadly, as it was to turn out, he liked expensive brand watches. At the time when he was fatally attacked, he was wearing a Patek Philippe Nautilus watch,” the prosecutor said.

“If real, such a watch could be worth anything in a range from £90,000 to £300,000.

“It is believed the deceased’s watch may not have been genuine, but was treated as genuine by those who sought to take it.”

Atkinson said Hettiarachchi was “an integral member of the security team” and was hired by the events organiser for the private ticketed brunch and afterparty with DJ.

“It was part of his role to protect the safety of those, like Mr Odunlami, who was attending the event. In fact he did the opposite,” he said.

Old Bailey heard that after the event, Hettiarachchi was seen on camera calling Louis Vandross, who is believed to be one of the robbers.

The jurors were told that Vandrose and Jordell Menzies were then driven by Quincy Ffrench in a white Mercedes with altered number plates from north-west London.

The prosecutor said, “The evidence shows that Ffrench, Vandrose and Menzies were setting off in car with a disguised registration in order to carry out a robbery and that their target for that robbery was at the Haz restaurant where Hettiarachchi was working, and to which by phone he had summoned them.”

The security operator was said to have filmed the victim and his “high-value” watch and then appeared to type something into his phone.

“The prosecution case is that he was making those other defendants aware of Mr Odunlami and his watch, in order that they could rob him of that apparently very valuable item,” Atkinson said.