Man ‘shot at close range’ after being ‘ambushed as they stepped out …
A man was ‘shot at close range’ after he was ‘ambushed’ as he stepped out of his car in Essex. Nathan Dale, 37, of Prospect Road in Barnet, and Jordan McKenzie-Pryce, 38, of Leverson Street in Norbury, Streatham, both pleaded not guilty of the attack on their victim in Crooked Mile, Waltham Abbey, on August 30, 2022, but were found guilty by a jury on November 3, 2023. Both were found not guilty of conspiracy to kidnap.
The jurors agreed that Dale and McKenzie-Pryce had meticulously planned the attack of their victim, which included attempting to reposition CCTV cameras in the area to evade identification in the days before. McKenzie-Pryce was also seen carrying the shotgun used in the attack on the same camera.
At about 10pm on the day of the attack, Dale and McKenzie-Pryce ambushed the victim before attempting to restrain them. An altercation followed and the victim was shot in the arm, leaving them with serious injuries as they managed to escape.
Following a detailed investigation to identify the two men, warrants were executed at the suspects’ home addresses on September 14 2022. Both were arrested and the shotgun used in the attack was found in McKenzie-Pryce’s address.
Our investigation found the pair had been monitoring the social media accounts and movements of the victim after seeing images of their high-value items shared online.
Detective Inspector Frazer Low said: “The victim of this attack was ambushed as they stepped out of their car, unaware he was being targeted by criminals.
“The impact of this ordeal will stay with them, I hope it provides some comfort knowing that Dale and McKenzie-Pryce have been found guilty of this malicious attack. This was a violent and unprovoked incident – taking both these men off the streets will make Waltham Abbey and Essex a safer place.”
They will be sentenced at Chelmsford Crown Court at a later date.