Man guilty of gruesome murder in south west London

A man described as 'violent and manipulative' who took control over the life of his victim has been found guilty of murdering a 55-year-old in south west London. The victim, James Dowdell of West Brompton, was discovered dead on February 17 with the cause of death determined as blunt force trauma and compression of the neck. Mohammed Assri was found in possession of James' personal items and a large amount of blood-stained cash, indicating he had taken over his victim's life. Assri, aged 47, was convicted of James Dowdell’s murder at Isleworth Court on September 7. He had made a frantic call to police claiming he found James dead at an address in St Mark's Grove, SW10, after supposedly performing CPR for 30 minutes. However, police uncovered CCTV footage showing Assri in the vicinity of his sister’s house 12 hours before the time he claimed, and James's pacemaker recorded signs of heart failure nearly two hours before the ambulance was called. During the trial, the court heard that Assri had been homeless before moving into James’s flat in late January. He immediately sought to dominate, excluding caregivers, and using James’s Halifax debit card regularly while pawning a valuable watch-strap. Medical evidence showed bruises on James's wrists and marks on his hands suggesting self-defense, contradicting Assri's claim that injuries resulted from a fall or self-harm. The post-mortem confirmed the cause of death as blunt force trauma and neck compression, and noted James had tried to defend himself with defensive wounds. Detective Inspector Maria Green stated, “Assri is a violent and manipulative man who has taken no responsibility for his actions, using his appearance at court as an attempt to dishonour the memory and life of James. I hope that James’s family and friends can draw some strength from seeing justice done.” Assri’s sentencing is scheduled for November 20 at the same court.