A 31-year-old man charged with the murder of drill rapper Sidique Kamara, 23, has appeared in court.
Kenneth Umezie, from Southwark, south London, appeared in custody at Camberwell Green Magistrates’ Court on Wednesday.
The bearded and heavy-set defendant, wearing a grey custody tracksuit and thick-rimmed black glasses, spoke only to confirm his name, date of birth and address.
District Judge Susan Green ordered him to appear before the Old Bailey on Friday for a bail application, ahead of a preliminary hearing on September 5. He was remanded in custody.
Kamara, also known as Moscow17 rapper incognito, was stabbed to death in Warham Street, Camberwell, on the evening of 1 August.
Three teenagers aged 16, 18 and 19, who were arrested in connection with the incident have been released under investigation.
Another member of the Moscow17 collective, 17-year-old Rhyhiem Ainsworth Barton, was found fatally shot on the same street in May.
The group’s tracks have had hundreds of thousands of views on YouTube and include lyrics hostile to long-running rivals Zone 2, from Peckham.
Earlier this year, Kamara and another member of Moscow17 were cleared at the Old Bailey of murdering teenager Abdirahman Mohamed, a brother of a member of Zone 2.
This weekend, confectionary giant Mars pulled its advertising from YouTube after one of its brands was shown alongside drill rap videos linked to violent crime in the capital.