It has been revealed that a woman in her 40s was shot dead in a drive-by shooting as she attended a funeral service at a church.
The shooting happened in Brent in the north west London On Saturday evening, a woman died and two men, both in their 30s, were injured.
The Metropolitan Police have launched a murder investigation following the “truly shocking” incident and the search for the shooter is ongoing.
Pastor Lawrence Larbie of River of Life Elim Pentecostal Church said a wake was held at the church and was scheduled to end at 10 p.m. But around 9:15 p.m., people stormed into the building saying, “There's been a shooting.”
He told the newspaper: “The car just drove through.” The victims were people who attended the wake. They were probably on their way home.'
Pastor Larbie said he was “devastated” by the news, adding: “They are invited to the memorial service and in the end they died. “You are killed. You're gone. Your life just happened like that.'
A friend paid tribute to the woman, who was not named, describing her as “brilliant”.
She told The Sun: “She was a light in our lives. “She loved her children and worked hard to give them a happy life.”
Officers rushed to the scene of the accident on Gifford Road at 9.15pm along with London Ambulance Service.
A woman in her 40s was found injured and was pronounced dead at the scene despite the efforts of emergency services.
Two other men, both in their 30s, were also injured in what police described as a “heinous act of violence”. One remains hospitalized in critical condition and the other's injuries are not life-threatening.
A woman in her 40s has been tragically killed and a man has been critically injured following a triple shooting. The police have launched a search for the shooter
The shooting happened in Brent, northwest London, on Saturday evening, the Met Police said
The scene on Gifford Road after Saturday's triple shooting
Witnesses told MailOnline today they heard several shots and a woman “screaming”.
A neighbor, a 40-year-old mother of five, said: “Last night we were in our house and around 9pm we heard a woman screaming, crying and shouting.”
“And then all our neighbors ran out and then the police and ambulance came and we could hear the sirens.
“Our neighbors said they heard gunshots and the shooting happened outside.
“We have lived here for 17 years and have never seen anything like this.”
“It's really bad that this is happening in our community.” “Our youngest, a nine-year-old, was sleeping in our bed because he was so scared.”
A woman who worked at a nearby church said she was at the service around 8:30 p.m. when she heard gunshots.
“The music was really loud, so I heard 'Pow Pow Pow,'” she said. “I could hear crying and screaming and screaming.
“I went outside and saw a woman in her 40s injured. I wanted to perform cardiopulmonary resuscitation on her, but I was very afraid that the shooter would kill me.
“Then the ambulance came five or six minutes later, but it was too late.”
A resident of nearby Creukhorne Road, who did not want to be named, said he heard five shots in a row.
Meanwhile, another man who lived near the scene of the fatal shooting described the incident as “pandemic.”
He said: “I was in church and someone came in and said there had been a shooting. 'I looked outside and it was chaos.'
Police forensic scientist at the scene in Gifford Road, Brent
Police officers at the scene in Gifford Road, Brent, after a woman died
Another neighbor, who has lived in the area since 2008, said her daughter had only gotten home 10 minutes before the shooting.
The woman added that the victim did not live in the area.
She said: “My daughter came through the door ten minutes before it happened.”
“My son thought there were fireworks, then I heard my neighbor screaming and I realized there was a shooting.”
“It's crazy, it's sad.” It's scary, it doesn't feel safe.
A neighbor who lives on a street in Brent where three people were shot Saturday night said people were standing up at a nearby church.
“People were coming out of the church, they were at the wake and they saw the bodies on the floor.”
“I heard a lot of crying and screaming.”
Tom Joyce, 72, who lives less than 100 meters from the scene of the shooting, said: “Last night around 9.30pm while watching TV I heard lots of police sirens and saw a police car. “I didn't hear any shots.
“I looked out the window and saw maybe a dozen young people – teenagers – running up and down the street.”
“I got up at 7am this morning and was cleaning up the street and I saw all the police cars and saw that everything was cordoned off.”
He added: “We’re used to it.” [shootings] Here. There was a shooting there a few years ago. “The problem here is that we don’t have a police force.”
Road closures remain in place around the crime scene today as police continue to collect evidence.
There have been no arrests and investigations into the circumstances are ongoing.
Superintendent Tony Josephs, from the North West Command Unit, which looks after Brent, said: “This is a truly shocking incident in which one woman has been killed and two others injured and I understand the concern this has caused to the local community and residents all of London will prepare.”
“I would like to reassure people that a team of experienced investigators is already working diligently to piece together the events of last night and find out who is responsible for this heinous act of violence.”
“If you were in or around Gifford Close at the time of the shooting or have any information about who was responsible, please contact us.”
“A family is devastated and we must work together to give them answers.”
Anyone with information that could help police is asked to call 101 or “X” @MetCC quoting CAD7137/14Dec. You can also give tips anonymously to the independent charity Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.
The River of Life Elim Pentecostal Church on Gifford Road is behind the police cordon.
