CCTV captured the terrifying moment a thug ran through a clothing store with a machete after stabbing a teenager to death.
Joshua Howell was seen running through the shop in Ipswich town centre after murdering Raymond James Quigley on Tuesday January 17, 2023.
Howell of Wellington Street, Ipswich alongside Hammett, of Larkhill Rise, Rushmere St Andrew had both been found guilty on Friday January 26 of murdering Quigley, known as James, following a trial lasting over five weeks.
This week, they were both sentenced to life imprisonment with minimum custodial terms of 24 years for Hammett and 20 years for Howell. They were both also found guilty of possession of an offensive weapon in a public place and Howell was further convicted of threatening another person with a bladed article.
Joshua Howell was seen running through the shop in Ipswich town centre
Suffolk Police
Ipswich Crown Court heard that Quigley had travelled to Ipswich from his home town of Wymondham in Norfolk to meet two friends. He was walking through the town centre with them when they encountered Hammett and Howell, who were wearing face masks, had hoods up and were both carrying large knives.
Hammett then ran directly towards Quigley and proceeded to attack him, while Howell, brandishing a machete, chased after one of Quigley's friends, who managed to escape to safety in a nearby shop.
Howell then ran off up Providence Street towards Tower Ramparts, while Hammett, having stabbed Quigley a number of times, ran off in the opposite direction back across Cornhill.
Following the attack, Quigley managed to stagger across the road to get help and collapsed in a nearby shop. Members of the public came to his assistance and provided initial first aid, with Street Rangers, police units and ambulance crews arriving shortly afterwards, but despite the best efforts of the public and medical personnel he died at the scene.
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Alfie Hammett and Joshua Howell were sentenced at Ipswich Crown Court
Suffolk Constabulary
A post-mortem revealed that Quigley sustained four stab wounds to the torso, with two wounds to the chest and abdomen proving to be fatal.
The court heard that the motive for the attack was most likely due to tensions between rival gangs from Norwich. Quigley had an association with a gang called "OTM", which stands for "Only The Money."
Hammett, who had previously lived in Norwich, was associated with another gang from there called "3rdside", who were rivals of "OTM". Joshua Howell had links to the Nacton gang in Ipswich, also known as "IP3" who the prosecution attest had formed a level of cooperation with "3rdside."
Mobile phone analysis discovered that a series of phone calls had been made prior to the attack between two individuals, one associated with "3rdside" and the other with "IP3." Immediately following these calls, a call was made by the "3rdside" associate to Hammett and by the "IP3" associate to Howell.
Within minutes of receiving these calls, both Hammett and Howell left their respective homes and made their way towards their meeting place near the college.
The pair could be seen walking through town together
Suffolk Police
The prosecution attested that this sequence of events was no mere coincidence. Although what was said in these calls cannot be proven, it is highly likely some sort of order or direction was given to both Hammett and Howell.
Alfie Hammett did not give evidence during the trial, but his defence disputed that he was the man who attacked James Quigley, referred to as "Male 1" by the prosecution.
Joshua Howell did take the stand to give evidence and denied being affiliated with "IP3." He claimed he had not previously met "Male 1" and said he had gone out to make a drug deal that day and was carrying a machete for his own protection.
His defence for drawing his machete was that he feared being attacked by the other group.
Raymond James Quigley was stabbed in Ipswich town centre
Suffolk Police
Senior investigating officer Detective Chief Inspector Tam Burgess said: “This was an horrific and completely senseless act of extreme violence that has resulted in the death of an 18-year-old man who had his whole life ahead of him. I want to pay tribute to James’ family for their dignity and perseverance throughout this investigation and more latterly the trial, which has been an incredibly difficult process for them.
“I also want to thank everyone who has been involved with this inquiry, from detectives, to the CCTV team, enquiry officers, major incident room staff and crime scene investigators. It was an intense three days following the attack, seizing and viewing hundreds of hours of video footage and gathering all the other evidence, which ultimately led to us identifying Alfie Hammett and Joshua Howell.
"I am still staggered by the brazen way in which Hammett and Howell committed this heinous crime in such a public place, with numerous members of the public around and in full view of CCTV cameras. James Quigley was simply walking through town with his friends, when he was subjected to this unprovoked attack and without any opportunity to defend himself. He stood no chance.
"And the motivation? Although they are never likely to tell us themselves, everything points to it being down to gang rivalry. Across the country we are seeing too many deaths of this nature. This senseless loss of young lives has to stop.
"Carrying knives is not the answer to anything. It devastates peoples’ lives, not just those of the victims, but their family and friends and also the families of the attackers. We must continue to work together as a society to educate everybody about the risks and do everything we can to prevent another family going through what James’ family has had to suffer."