Two brothers have been found guilty of manslaughter for leaving a man to die in the freezing waters of Shadwell Basin dock in east London in an unprovoked attack.

East London Advertiser: Ibrahim GharibIbrahim Gharib (Image: Ghrib family)

The body of Ibrahim Ghrib, 20, was not recovered until the following morning—despite attempts by passers-by to rescue him.

Amran Chowdhury, 27, and his brother Misba, 24, were convicted at the Old Bailey on Friday.

Amran’s girlfriend at the time, Steffi Rai, now 27, was convicted of perverting justice by helping him evade arrest. All three are being sentenced at a later date.

“No motive has ever been discovered for the attack,” Det Con Darrell Etchells said after the trial. “But I hope Ibrahim’s family can find some peace that the jury are satisfied the brothers were responsible for his death.”

Ibrahim had been drinking with his 17-year-old girlfriend on the quayside at the docks in Garnet Street, Wapping, on March 18, 2010.

Amran Chowdhury had also been drinking that night with his girlfriend in a nearby flat overlooking the dock basin.

Minutes later he was joined in Garnet Street by his brother and several other men, all wearing hoods, who approached the couple.

The girl was said to have been knocked to the ground. She came to as the group ran off and heard Ibrahim shouting from the water. Her screams alerted a passerby who tried to reach Ibrahim, but was beaten by the freezing temperatures.

A man living nearby raced to help and jumped into the water, but was unable to rescue him because of the cold.

Ibrahim’s body was recovered the following morning by Met Police underwater search team. He had drowned in the 30ft deep basin.

Chowdhury’s phone was found at the scene and his then-address in nearby Chamberlain House, Cable Street, was searched, where his brother Misba was arrested.

He wasn’t there, but handed himself in at Limehouse police station three days later. His girlfriend was interviewed as a witness four weeks after that, but police said her detailed account of events that night proved false and she was subsequently arrested.

There was insufficient evidence to charge the three at that time. The Crown Prosecution Service, however, gave the go-ahead in November to charge them following a review of the evidence. Five others arrested during the investigation were released with no further action.

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Brothers charged with Ibrahim Gharib’s death in 2010 at Shadwell Basin - November 2013