Four individuals have been sentenced to prison for their involvement in the “cruel and appalling” murder of a man who was fatally stabbed through the window of a taxi in East London.

Anselam Senaj, aged 26, lost his life when a silver Mitsubishi forcefully halted the taxi he was traveling in on November 11, 2023, in Newham.

Muhammad Saqib Khan, 24, from Enfield, was convicted of murder for delivering the deadly stab, as revealed in court proceedings at the Old Bailey. He received a life sentence with a minimum incarceration of 26 years.

Muhammad Samiyul Miah also received a life sentence, but with a lesser minimum term of 25 years for his role in the murder. Zain Ali was handed a 14-year sentence for manslaughter, while Ibrahim Naim was sentenced to 10 years and six months for the same charge.

During the sentencing, Judge Judy Khan KC characterized the murder as a “cruel and shocking assault” that took place in broad daylight and was clearly “premeditated and orchestrated.”

Prior to the taxi being ambushed on Victoria Avenue, Mr. Senaj reportedly expressed, “there is one car behind – they will kill me,” according to the court testimony.

Three of the six individuals inside the Mitsubishi surrounded the taxi and launched an attack on the victim while he remained seated.

Dressed in dark attire and equipped with masks and gloves, the attackers included two who brandished knives measuring up to 2 feet (60 cm) in length, as noted by the jury.

One assailant stabbed Mr. Senaj in the chest before all three fled back into the Mitsubishi.

Despite emergency services’ attempts to save him, Mr. Senaj succumbed to his injuries at the scene.

The stolen vehicle was discovered burnt out the following day.

Testimonies in court revealed that the assault was drug-related, although the specific motivations were not entirely clear.

Prosecutor Alexandra Healy KC informed the jury: “Evidence suggests, based on the drugs later found on Mr. Senaj and messages retrieved from his phone, that he was engaged in drug dealing.

“When Mr. Senaj spotted the Mitsubishi approaching, he evidently recognized the imminent threat and alerted the taxi driver that the vehicle’s occupants intended to kill him.

“Tragically, he was entirely correct in his assessment of their intentions.”

At the sentencing hearing on Friday, the victim’s cousin, Elira Senaj, denounced the attackers, stating: “You will forever be cowards and boys.

“You relied on numbers and weapons to fulfill your task. You behaved like a child rather than a man when faced with an equal opponent.”

Miah, 19, from Manor Park, also confessed to possessing a blade, with his sentence taking into account a separate conviction for the rape of a 15-year-old girl in a north London park in March 2023.

Both Ali, 22, and Naim, 18, from East Ham, were acquitted of murder but found guilty of the lesser charge of manslaughter.

Ali was additionally implicated in stealing the victim’s phone.