Daniel Anjorin: A 'gentle' boy killed on the way to school

Thank you for subscribing to The Thread.

You might be reading this on the way to work, still feeling a bit sleepy and drifting through thoughts about your plans for the day and weekend ahead.

But for a young boy named Daniel Anjorin, any dreams he had for his future were ripped away from him on his way to school.

On Tuesday the 30th of April, 2024, the 14-year-old was stabbed with a sword in Hainault, London, and his innocent life was violently taken.

A 36-year-old man, Marcus Aurelio Arduini Monzo has now been charged with his murder.

Those who knew Daniel say the Year 9 student was "loved" and "meant so much to a lot of people and will be dearly missed.” He was described as "always full of happiness and joy."

Many people have felt heavy with grief about such a young life being taken but no one can even begin to imagine what his family is going through. Or even how they will navigate what's to come.

We can only keep them in our prayers as they now battle an unbearable loss that no family should ever endure.

Rest in peace Daniel Anjorin.

No parent should ever send their child to school in the morning for them not to come back.

Full story

The Thread

Business

Black and minority ethnic women are twice as likely to be on zero-hours contracts as white men, new TUC analysis has shown. The union says that these contracts 'hand almost total control over hours and earning power to managers adding that it is a “prime example” of structural racism in action. Full story

The Thread

Sisters who used their mum’s 20-year-old recipe to start a Nigerian snack business selling ‘puff puff’ with a twist, appeared on Channel 4’s Aldi’s Next Big Thing competition to have their products in over 1000 stores. The women made it to the final two showcasing the "much-loved West African snack on National TV." Full story

The Thread

Rapper Stormzy has revealed a "state-of-the-art facility with a full-size football pitch, recording studio and gaming centre" in his hometown of Croydon, south London, to help to give opportunities to those who are less fortunate. MerkyFC HQ which has been three years in the making is a joint partnership with Adidas. Full story

The Thread

Policing

The daughter of a UK man who died in Cambodia says she doesn’t believe he died by suicide after being told by Cambodian police that he fell from the 22nd floor of his hotel. Shannon says she has not been given CCTV or evidence and that another man ‘fell to his death’ weeks prior. Full story

The Thread

A serving Met Police officer, PC Jonthan Marsh, 34, who was found guilty of assault after he punched and swore at an innocent medical worker who had called the police to report a crime, has avoided jail. Instead, the victim Mr Attanayake will be given £1,500 compensation and a standard surcharge of £154. Full story

The Thread

A former head of Scotland's prosecution service says he 'regrets losing the confidence' of the family of Sheku Bayoh who died after he was restrained by six police officers who batoned him to the ground and cuffed his hands and ankles. The 31-year-old who lost consciousness sustained facial injuries, a fractured rib and bruises. James Wolffe KC said he felt "deep regret" while "reflecting back on this case, that Mr Bayoh's family were left with a lack of confidence in the Crown and what the Crown had been doing." None of the officers involved faced any charges. The inquiry into his death continues. Full story

For more context, do read this article which details how the case arrived to this point.

The Thread

The President of the National Black Police Association says that plans to increase the use of stop and search in London "could further erode trust between the police and the Black community" after Metropolitan Police Commissioner Sir Mark Rowley vowed to boost the policing tactic which is disproportionately used on Black, Asian and ethnic minorities. Andy George called Rowley's announcement a "potentially a knee jerk" reaction following the death of Daniel Anjorin. Full story

The Thread

Heroes

A memorial for Muslim soldiers who fought and died alongside British and Allied forces in both World Wars is set to be built in Staffordshire to tell the story of sacrifice made by ‘at least 2.5 million Muslim soldiers and labourers’ in WW1 & 5.5 million WW2. Full story

The Thread

Dozens showed up to pay respects at the funeral of a 94-year-old Sikh woman from Southampton who dedicated her life to raising her six children, 29 grandchildren, 53 great-grandchildren, and nine great, great grandchildren. Pritam Kaur "was sought for her wisdom" by people in the community and provided a "listening ear." Full story

The Thread

Entertainment

Presenter Sangita Myska was inexplicably absent from her usual slot on LBC Radio without any comment from show bosses leaving listeners worried. This then sparked a petition calling for the ‘principled’ & ‘balanced’ journalist to be reinstated. LBC then announced that Sangita who was named Radio Presenter of the Year 2023 was being replaced by Vanessa Feltz after bosses said "her contract ended". The petition to reinstate her has now reached over 27,000 signatures. Full story

The Thread

English actor John Cleese says that he removed the N-word from his West End Fawlty Towers revival after first considering keeping it but then deciding it "wasn't worth the hassle." The 84-year-old added that "in contemporary Britain there are too many “literal-minded people” who “don’t understand irony”. Full story

The Thread

Slavery & Colonialism

Literary award, the Booker prize faced backlash from Radio 1Xtra host Richie Brave after organisers wrote a piece about its enslavement links describing brothers George and Josias Booker as 'managers' rather than 'enslavers'. The DJ whose legal surname is Booker after his ancestors were enslaved by the founders of the company added that they should also reconsider the name. Full story

The Thread

Semley Auctioneers in Dorest has removed 18 ancient Egyptian human skulls of 10 men, five women, and three people of unknown sex that were up for auction with a guide price of "£200-300 for each lot" after MP Bell Ribeiro Addy, the chair of the all-party parliamentary group on Afrikan reparations said "selling them would perpetuate the atrocities of colonialism." Full story

The Thread

Politics

Facebook groups where members called London Mayor Sadiq Khan a ‘terrorist sympathiser’ and shared racist posts promoting white supremacist slogans are secretly being operated by Conservative party staff. Tories such as Susan Hall have also made posts in some of the groups. Full story

The Thread

A London council has come under fire from its own mayor for its decision to take down pro-Palestine murals in east London while another which portrays four journalists standing in front of ruins with the words “Heroes of Palestine” written above is being reviewed after complaints were made by pro-Israel lawyers. Mayor Lutfur Rahman of Tower Hamlets wrote on X, “Murals of Palestinian children, doctors & journalists murdered in Gaza should never be conflated with hate speech,”Full story

The Thread

World News

Sudanese and international experts warn of a massacre that could generate “Hiroshima & Nagasaki-level casualties” in Sudan. Bombs detonated over Hiroshima and Nagasaki in 1945 killed an estimated 215,000 people. Full story

The Thread

Nigerian citizens claim they were blocked from entering a Chinese supermarket in their 'own country' and told by security that 'it was only for Chinese people.' The supermarket based in Abuja has now been shut down by authorities and an investigation has been launched. The Chinese chamber of commerce based in Nigeria has denied allegations of racism saying, 'No individual was subjected to discrimination or denied access to the estate or supermarket to purchase groceries as widely believed.' Full story

The Thread

The End

You've reached the end of The Thread.

Thanks for staying informed with me.

Don't forget to share The Thread with friends, family.

Get them subscribed and help The Thread grow.

You can also follow me on X aka Twitter for the most up-to-date news by clicking the blue bird icon below.

Most of all, thank you for your support in helping these stories matter.

The Thread by Melissa Sigodo