Jodie Chesney: Girl Scout murdered after friend bought drug from rival dealer, court hears

A Girl Scout was stabbed to death by drug dealers after her friend bought cannabis from a rival rather than their new batch of “Pineapple Express”, a court has heard.

Jodie Chesney, 17, was knifed in the back while she was sitting listening to music and smoking with friends in Amy’s Park, Harold Hill, east London, on 1 March.

The Old Bailey has heard the popular A-level student had nothing to do with drug dealing and was unlikely to have been the intended target of the attack.

Earlier that day, one of her group had unsuccessfully tried to buy £20 of “Pineapple Express” cannabis from the defendant Svenson Ong-a-Kwie, 19, and turned to another local dealer instead, the jury was told.

Mr Ong-a-Kwie, 19, and his co-accused Manuel Petrovic, 20, were said to be in business together selling drugs, while a 16-year-old defendant acted as a “runner” for Mr Petrovic.

A fourth defendant, aged 17, was allegedly helping Mr Ong-a-Kwie, also known as Spencer, to sell drugs on the day of the killing.

Prosecutor Crispin Aylett QC told jurors: “One or more of Jodie’s friends had bought cannabis in the past from one or more of the defendants.”

On 28 February, Mr Ong-a-Kwie’s mobile phone sent a message to customers, including Jodie’s friend Kane Compton, advertising a new strain of cannabis known as Pineapple Express, he said.

The message offered 1g and 2g bags of the drug, with “fast delivery all over the hill (Harold Hill) holla with the dolla”.

Mr Compton, 18, passed the message on to another of Jodie’s group, Bryce Henderson, 18, who agreed to contact Spencer, aka Mr Ong-a-Kwie, to buy a bag of Pineapple Express for £20, it was claimed.

When Mr Henderson had no luck, Mr Compton sent the man he knew as Spencer a text to ask why and was told the driver had crashed his car and was on the way to hospital, the court heard.

Mr Aylett told jurors that there was no evidence Mr Petrovic had crashed his car so either he was lying or he was working with someone else.

By 7.05pm, Mr Henderson gave up on Spencer and agreed to buy £40 of cannabis from another local dealer who arranged delivery to Amy’s Park within the hour, the jury was told.

Mr Aylett said that while Mr Henderson had no luck getting hold of Pineapple Express from Mr Ong-a-Kwie, Mr Compton’s older brother Joshua ordered some for himself.

Mr Ong-a-Kwie allegedly delivered it personally, taking a minicab to Harold Hill accompanied by the 17-year-old defendant.

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Afterwards, he sent a series of urgent texts to Mr Petrovic saying: “I need you ASAP”, jurors heard.

Mr Aylett said: “The prosecution suggest that while Svenson Ong-a-Kwie was in Harold Hill he must either have heard or seen something that upset him.

“Joshua Compton has said that there was no conversation between him and Svenson.”

The four defendants, from east London, have denied murder.

The trial continues.

Additional reporting by PA.

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