A UK man has been charged with murder after he allegedly headbutted a top chef trained by Gordon Ramsay and then repeatedly punched the victim while he was lying on the ground during London’s Notting Hill Carnival.
Omar Wilson, 31, is accused of viscously attacking 41-year-old Mussie Imnetu outside a restaurant after the carnival event — billed as Europe’s biggest street party — ended at about 11.30 p.m. Aug. 26, police said.
The Dubai-based chef, who was visiting London for work, was found unconscious on the street and died four days later in a hospital.
Wilson, who was initially arrested for grievous bodily harm in the immediate aftermath, had his charges upgraded to murder during a court hearing Monday, the BBC reported.
Prosecutors allege Wilson “headbutted” the victim after the pair got into some form of interaction in the vicinity of the carnival event, the court heard.
A minute later, Wilson allegedly “punched the deceased five times to his head” and continued “punching him to the head” after he fell to the ground, prosecutors said.
Imnetu later died from what cops described as “catastrophic brain injuries.”
It wasn’t immediately clear what preceded the alleged attack.
The victim was the head chef at the Brasserie — a restaurant within the members-only Arts Club Dubai.
In the hours before he was attacked, police said, Imnetu was spotted leaving the Arts Club’s London location before heading over to the vicinity of the carnival.
Imnetu previously worked under Ramsay, as well as fellow celebrity chefs Alain Ducasse and Marcus Wareing, according to the club’s website.
Meanwhile, Wilson — who didn’t enter a plea during Monday’s hearing — was held without bond ahead of his next court date on Nov. 25.
