This is the moment an innocent father-of-two was shot in the head by a gunman riding an electric bike in a case of mistaken identity.
Jake Brown, 23, opened fire at the silver Skoda five times on Page Hall Road in Sheffield and shot Kevin Pokuta, 19, in the head on December 12 last year.
Brown can be seen passing the car with Mr Pokuta inside before backing up, pulling out a gun and shooting at the vehicle as he quickly backed away.
But he shot the wrong man, after falsely believing the car belonged to the cannabis dealers he had tried to rob earlier that day.
The victim’s younger brother, Dominik, 17, was also in the car during the shooting, but was unharmed.
In an emotional victim impact statement, the teenager said: ‘Kevin was a good soul who had his whole life ahead of him.
“He was a shy family man, but he was very funny and could make us all laugh.”
On Monday, Brown was sentenced to life in prison with a minimum sentence of 36 years for murder.
Footage shows Jake Brown, 23, opening fire on the silver Skoda five times and shooting Kevin Pokuta, 19, in the head in the early hours of December 12 last year.
Brown, pictured, who did not take the stand to defend himself during the trial, was jailed for life for Kevin’s murder on Monday and told he must serve a minimum of 36 years.
After a botched robbery, Brown mistook the car for one belonging to drug dealers, pulled up next to the vehicle before firing five shots at it.
Three other men, Lester Ramsey, 25, Leon Waite, 26, and Adam Mulligan, 33, were also found guilty of conspiracy to rob. They were also sentenced to a total sentence of 12 years.
Sentencing Bron, Judge Lavender said: “It is a tragedy that you, no doubt fired by your desire for revenge, should have mistaken him for the wrong person.” No sentence I can hand down will compensate for Kevin’s loss.
It was heard how the murder occurred after a botched robbery on December 11, 2023, after the group met another group of men at a cannabis factory at a house in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, in a convoy of cars blacks, electric bicycles and Mulligan’s White Van.
The group went there with a plan to steal the drugs, but it failed when the drug dealers defended them.
The prosecution claimed that a gray VW Passat in which the drug traffickers were traveling ran over one of the men and knocked him off his bicycle.
Shortly after this, Brown shot at the car in retaliation, the court was told.
Prosecutor John Harrison KC told the jury during the trial: “It is clear that the majority of the group wanted revenge after the confrontation, so they went to look for the VW Passat with which they intended to shoot its occupants.”
Three other men named above were also found guilty of conspiracy to rob and were also jailed for a total of 12 years.
It was heard how the murder occurred after a botched robbery on December 11, 2023.
The 19-year-old who died caught in the crosshairs was shot in the back of the head, leaving his heartbroken younger brother struggling to get them both to safety.
After failing to steal the drugs, the group disbanded, however within 30 minutes, Brown obtained a different gun and took to the streets seeking revenge.
It was at that time, around 12:20 a.m., that he saw a similar silver-gray car and, believing it to be the one transporting the drug dealer, pulled up next to the vehicle before firing five shots at it before driving away.
The 19-year-old who died caught in the crosshairs was shot in the back of the head, leaving his heartbroken younger brother struggling to get them both to safety.
Paramedics rushed him to Northern General Hospital, but his injury was deemed medically inoperable.
He was taken off life support on December 13, 2023, and died shortly after.
In a victim impact statement written by Dominik on his behalf and read by Harrison, Kevin’s family said they were “devastated” by the 19-year-old’s death.
They said, ‘No one can understand that Kevin is dead. When they took him to the hospital we all thought that he was going to be fine and that the doctors would be able to save him.
‘Kevin was a father to two young children who he will never see grow up…his son celebrated his third birthday by blowing out candles at his grave…No child should have to do that.
‘Kevin was a good soul who had his whole life ahead of him. He was a shy family man, but he was very funny and could make us all laugh.
“Kevin will be loved and missed forever.”
Paramedics took the 19-year-old to Northern General Hospital, but his injury was deemed medically inoperable.
During his trial, a jury unanimously found Brown guilty of murder in November.
He was also found guilty of possession of a firearm with intent to endanger life, attempted GBH and conspiracy to rob.
Passing sentence, Judge Lavender said: ‘Kevin Pokuta had nothing to do with the cannabis farm. You didn’t know him and you had nothing against him.
A 17-year-old boy, who cannot be named for legal reasons, was also found guilty of conspiracy to rob.
The judge praised him for participating in youth services, education and seeking volunteer work since the murder.
He was given a youth rehabilitation order lasting two years and ordered to carry out 60 hours of unpaid work.