A reward of up to £20,000 is being offered by police hunting the killers of a man shot in London’s East End in a mistaken identity.
The reward has been announced by Scotland Yard on the fourth anniversary of the fatal shooting of father-of-three Wayne Stockdale who was gunned down at a pedestrian underpass in Bromley-by-Bow while cycling less than a mile from his home in Poplar.
It was the firsts of a double tragedy to hit the Stockdale family after his widow Anne died two years later from cancer—without knowing who was responsible or why 42-year-old Wayne was murdered.
Two gunmen got out of a vehicle and opened fire on Wayne at the subway in Rounton Round, near the corner of Knapp Road, at 10.20pm on Friday, May 6, 2011, then fired several shots at a group standing outside nearby shops before driving off.
Wayne was rushed by ambulance to the Royal London Hospital in Whitechapel, but died four days later on May 10 from a gunshot wound to the head.
“We believe Wayne was innocently murdered,” Acting Det Insp Peter Hine said this week. “He left a family waiting for his killers to be brought to justice.
“We have always maintained Wayne was not the intended target and are appealing for anyone who knows what happened that night to contact us.
“Those who have remained silent these four years should think about Wayne’s family and re-examine their consciences and help bring his killers before a court.”
Detectives have pledge to treat all information in confidence and to protect “those that do the right thing and come forward”.
Anne Stockdale finally lost her four-year fight against cancer in 2013 at the age of 44. Wayne had given up his job as a silk-screen printer at a firm in the Isle of Dogs to look after her at their home in Portree Street in Poplar after she was diagnosed in 2009.
Anne was finally in remission and had just been given the ‘all clear’ by doctors—the day before the shooting. The trauma hit her badly and the family believe it caused a secondary cancer which eventually took her life.
The couple’s daughter Charlene Tracey, 25 at the time, called for justice after her mother’s funeral.
“My mum never got the justice she deserved,” she had told the East London Advertiser.
“Someone must know who did it. We ask them please to come forward and tell police what they know.”
A 28-year-old man was re-arrested this February on suspicion of murder and was bailed pending further enquires, due to return next month. He had initially been arrested in 2012, but was released with no further action.
Three others were arrested in 2011, a 19-year-old in Poplar, a 27-year-old in Hackney and a 22-year-old in Stoke Newington. A fourth man of 21 was arrested the following year. All were released with no further action.
Police are urging anyone with information to call them on 020-8785 8267, or call Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800-555111 or Crimestoppers online.
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