Pair found guilty of murdering teen who was stabbed in Southend street

Drug dealers Nathan Sylvester, 25, and Troy Lewis, 21, took part in an attack on 19-year-old Nico Ramsay in Queens Road, Southend, on February 13, leaving the teen with a fatal stab wound.

Fugitive Allcie Houlder, 22, struck the fatal blow, but it took a jury less than eight hours to decide the pair knew he was armed with a knife and intended to use it against Mr Ramsay.

Members of Mr Ramsay’s family shouted “Yes!” as the unanimous guilty verdicts were announced on Friday.

As he was led from the dock, Sylvester, of Perth Road, Plaistow, East London, shouted: “Suck your mum. I’m alive, I’m alive!”

Judge Patricia Lynch had opened proceedings by warning those in the public gallery to “maintain their dignity.”

Following the verdicts, she told the members of the jury they were welcome to attend the sentencing hearing on Monday once everyone had “calmed down”.

She said: “You can see that tensions are running high and it’s better that we approach it when everyone is calm.

“As far as the sentence is concerned, it’s giving nothing away to say there is only one sentence involved and that is a sentence of life imprisonment.

“But we will be talking about minimum terms to serve.”

Sylvester and Lewis, of Odessa Road, Forest Gate, East London, were tried on the basis of joint enterprise, despite their only physical involvement in the attack being punches and kicks.

But harrowing CCTV footage of the assault - played dozens of times during the five week trial - also showed Sylvester dragging Mr Ramsay across the road by his legs after he had been stabbed.

Both men also prevented Mr Ramsay’s cousin from intervening.

Sylvester backed him up against a wall, while Lewis twice revealed he had a knife in his waistband.

Houlder is believed to have fled to France in the days after the murder and is still at large.

The trial heard there was bad blood between Mr Ramsay and Sylvester, who was in charge of a drug dealing gang that operated in London and Southend.

However, the prosecution was unable to establish a motive.

Sylvester, Lewis and Mr Ramsay’s cousin all declined to give evidence during the trial.

Following the murder, Houlder fled to his girlfriend’s house in York Road, Southend, and has not been seen since.

Sylvester and Lewis were quickly arrested in nearby Sutton Road.

Lewis was found with a knife, 52 wraps of heroin and 62 wraps of cocaine.

He admitted possession of a knife and two charges of possession of class A drugs with intent to supply.

Although he did not have the drugs on him, Sylvester also faced the same drugs charges.

He denied the charges but was found guilty on both counts.

The pair are due to return to Chelmsford Crown Court to be sentenced on Monday.

Ringleader took selfies with drugs

NATHAN Sylvester was a ruthless gang leader who documented his drug dealing lifestyle in dozens of selfies, posing with drugs and large amounts ofcash.

The labourer was found in possession of four mobile phones and an iPad following the attack, which suggested he was in charge of a drug dealing operation.

But the devices themselves contained the proof- dozens of snaps of Sylvester surrounded by drugs and cash.

Richard Christie, prosecuting, showed the jury images downloaded from one of the phones and from the iPad.

He told them: “You will see from the images Mr Sylvester holding large quantities of money.”

One of the photographs showed Sylvester sitting in a chair with cash on his lap, while another showed a large rock of what appeared to be crack cocaine.

Others included cannabis plants and what looked like drugs wrapped up in plastic.

The prosecution alleged that 6” 3’ Sylvester- dubbed “big and ugly” by one witness- did not have any drugs or weapons on his person because he wanted his lieutenants to take the risk.

Ultimately, the the jury agreed that Sylvester was the ringleader.

Trial was held up after prison trousers tantrum

TROY Lewis failed to attend the second day of his murder trial- because prison bosses would not allow him to wear two sets of trousers.

The case had to be adjourned after just one day due to what Judge Patricia Lynch called his “petulant behaviour”.

Lewis had been arrested wearing jogging bottoms under his jeans, a tactic used by drug dealers to stop their knives falling out.

For this reason, prison bosses do not allow prisoners onto the bus wearing excessive clothing.

Judge Lynch told the court: “It’s astonishing that he would rather fall out over his clothes than attend his own murder trial.”