In the past eight months alone, the Brent & Kilburn Times has reported on a total of five victims of shootings in Brent.
This includes three people shot in Gilford Road, Harlesden, on December 14 – resulting in the death of 44-year-old Michelle Sadio.
Five days later, a man in his 20s was shot in Washbourne Road, between Harlesden and Stonebridge.
On July 7, a 30-year-old man was shot in Tanfield Avenue at 9pm.
Statistics show that gun crime is becoming a more apparent issue in the area – however police believe these are “isolated incidents”.
High spike
According to data published by the Metropolitan Police, there have been 49 gun crime offences in Brent between December 2024 and June 2025.
Eight of these were robberies involving guns and four involved shootings.
In fact, the only boroughs to have more of these offences reported were Enfield, with 53, Croydon with 54, and Haringey, where there were 60.
Gun crime in Brent is also up 22.4% in the 12 months leading to June 2025, compared to the previous 12 months.
In Camden, which would include the data for some parts of Kilburn, there is a 61.1% rise.
It should be noted that 16 boroughs have seen a more significant percentage increase in gun offences in its past 12 months compared to Brent.
This is because there is an average of around six of these crimes reported in Brent each month, according to wider statistics dating back from July 2021 to June 2025.
In comparison, other London boroughs report fewer gun crimes on average, hence the more significant percentage increase.
However, the Met Police data also shows that there have been eight positive outcomes into gun crimes investigations in Brent between December 2024 to June 2025, with a 71.% increase in positive outcomes compared to the previous 12 months.
Out of all boroughs, Hillingdon had the most positive outcomes, with 14 cases.
Knife crime
Currently obtainable data for knife crime is slightly out of date, but shows that in 2022/23, Brent had the second highest change in knife crime in a year, as it was just below that of Havering.
But as a whole, Westminster had the most knife offences reported with 871, compared to Brent which is 533.
Currently, the Met says it is reviewing knife crime data and will be able to provide more recent statistics at a later date.
‘Isolated incidents’
Chief Inspector Craig Hands of the northwest Borough Command Unit was asked by the Brent & Kilburn Times whether he believed there is an issue with major and violent crime in the area.
He believes these are “isolated incidents” and “happening in a confined area”.
“A lot of them do come down to the possession and willingness of carrying a knife, it’s not always linked to gangs and youth activity,” he said.
Chief Insp Hands added: “If you have a knife on you, you’re more likely to use it in one of these difficult circumstances, when emotions are very high and anger kicks in and all the rest of it. So, that’s something that, again, through the knife amnesties that are going on and through the campaigns around that and the knife bins, we’re really trying hard with our partners to get that message out there.”
How you can help
The Metropolitan Police is encouraging people to sign up to Met Engage, a new platform launched by police for residents to report and keep updated on the issues that matter to them the most.
According to the force, it is working to boost patrols and engagement in parks which have been identified as a risk to public safety.
Chief Insp Hands said: “The more we can get out in the communities and the more we can talk to our communities and build that relationship with them and the trust of confidence, I think the more open they are to having conversations with us.
“I think the Met Engage will also give people another strand to be able to provide information, and I think the importance is realising that however little somebody might think a piece of information is, it may well build into a much bigger picture that we’ve got internally.”
