The spate of violence appeared to begin as 2024 drew to a close, and, blood has been spilled several times in every month since the start of 2025.
But what is the root of the problem and how can it be tackled? The Brent & Kilburn Times has been looking deeper into the violence on our streets and has seen first-hand the efforts being made to stop it.
What’s going on?
December 2024 saw the death of 44-year-old Michelle Sadio, one of three people hit by bullets in a drive-by shooting outside a church in Harlesden.
Michelle Sadio died in a drive-by shooting (Image: Metropolitan Police) Just two weeks later, 35-year-old dad Recorda Davey-Ann Clarke was stabbed to death in Willesden Green.
Since then, there have been dozens of knife and gun incidents in Brent.
Even in July, a shop worker was slashed in Willesden, a man was shot in Neasden, a man was stabbed with a screwdriver in Kilburn and an 18-year-old was stabbed near Church Road in Harlesden.
‘It’s not always gangs’
Chief Inspector Craig Hands, of the northwest Borough Command Unit, states that a common misconception is that most stabbings are linked to gang or youth activity.
“It’s about people having disagreements and resulting in a sort of serious violence,” he explained.
This was a message that Lori-Jane Forrest, who spoke with the paper after the fatal stabbing of Mr Clarke in Linacre Road, Willesden, on December 28, wanted to make clear.
Ms Forrest, who raised two children with Mr Clarke, said: “He’s not what you’d call a ‘road-man’.”
Instead, she said he was a “fun-loving” family man with a bright future ahead of him, who unfortunately stumbled into an altercation.
‘Knives get you into trouble, not out of it’
According to Chief Insp Hands, many major incidents involve a situation escalating due to someone carrying a knife, as opposed to victims being targeted in gang and youth attacks.
He said: “My biggest concern is really reinforcing that message about the dangers of carrying knives, and trying to get people to stop doing that – because if you don’t have a knife on you, you’re less likely to use it.”
In May, there were six known stabbings in or near Kilburn High Road in just one week.
Chief Insp Hands used this as another example that not all stabbings are gang-related: “There’s no doubt that gang-related incidents are happening and there are going to be serious crimes and knife crime – particularly linked to gang crime. I’m never going to deny that.
“But of the six incidents that we had in Kilburn, I believe that only one was linked back to youth violence and potentially gang violence.”
Chief Insp Hands said: “It all comes back to that willingness to have a knife in their pocket, bag, or readily accessible.
“And then it results in it being used in this particular way. That is where our concerns are lying around that.”
Tackling the problem
Having lived in Brent all my life, and reporting on tragedy after tragedy, I shared the same question as many – what is being done for us to feel safe?
To get a better understanding, I went to Kilburn Police Station and was greeted by Inspector Yu Zhang, who showed me Operation Terminos – a cross-borough operation working to reduce violence, robbery and burglary across Brent, Barnet, Harrow, Camden and Westminster.
The operation started in March last year, targeting these issues to lessen drug supply, anti-social behaviour and gang crime.
In just one day I was briefed about dozens of wanted suspects in Kilburn and witnessed two arrests, officers dealing with multiple incidents and even sat in on a call for a suspected gun sighting.
Harlesden, however, had a 2.11% increase.
After spending a day with Inspector Zhang and his team, it became clear that police are actively cracking down on wanted suspects and criminals in the area.
‘They know we are watching them’
Chief Insp Hands explained that there are a “number of different intel strands and matrixes” looking into gangs.
He said: “We’re always looking at building intelligence, whether it’s through some of the stop and searches that we’re doing or the warrants – a lot of which tend to be focused on drug activity.
“It goes without saying that there’s a huge effort and focus still very much on gangs.
“We have a pocket of gangs across Brent that are still very active, and we are driven to keep an eye on those and seeking every opportunity we can to disrupt their activities and obviously bring them to justice where we can.”
He also believes gangs are “obviously aware” they are being monitored, and change the ways they operate to avoid attention.
“So we have to stay one step ahead of them, we have to use technology and different methods to apprehend them,” he added.
Inspector Zhang meanwhile mentioned that tactical options in Operation Terminos are constantly being shuffled to keep suspects on their toes.
Guns and knives
Between December 2024 and June 2025, there have been 49 gun crime offences in Brent – eight of these were robberies involving guns and four involved shootings.
Statistics show that Brent is the borough with the fourth highest number of gun crimes reported this year – the highest being Haringey with 59 incidents.
Gun crime in Brent is also up 22.4% in the 12 months leading to June 2025, compared to the previous 12 months.
The data currently obtainable for knife crime is slightly out of date, but it shows that in 2022/23, Brent had the second highest increase in knife crime, just below that of Havering.
Chief Insp Hands said that “it’s obviously devastating” when a new incident occurs, but added: “I’m pleased to say, particularly around the more serious incidents, we do have a very good success rate in bringing offenders to justice.
“It’s just very sad that there has it has to be on the back of somebody either being killed or seriously injured – which obviously we’re trying to work very hard to prevent.”
Taking weapons off the streets
During my ride-along with police in Kilburn, I was joined by Cllr Harbi Farah, Brent Council’s cabinet member for safer communities, jobs and skills,
The councillor, who told me he has lived in nearly all areas of Brent, made it clear that he has a keen interest in aiding the Metropolitan Police to deter violent crime as much as possible.
In fact, he was well acquainted with Inspector Zhang and his team – having joined In dozens of previous ride-alongs.
He stated: “Reducing crime, and in particular knife crime, is one of our top priorities.
“We are actively working with the police, neighbouring councils, schools, charities and community organisations to increase safety in the community.”
Inspector Zhang agreed with Cllr Farah’s comments, saying that the force greatly relies on the collaborative work with Brent Council.
“These bins are monitored on a quarterly basis and offer a safe and anonymous way for people to dispose of knives, ninja swords, and other weapons.“
Knife crime workshops in schools and community venues are also held to help young people understand the risks and consequences of violence.
The Metropolitan Police is also keen to push its Met Engage, a new way for local officers to provide crime prevention advice, updates on ongoing incidents and investigations in the area.
Sign up to it here: https://metengage.co.uk/Content/Pages/Sign-Up
This is part of a series of articles looking into gang crime and violence in Brent. Expect more throughout the coming days.
