The search for David Ungi has finally ended, as the baby murder suspect was captured and arrested in Malaga.
Ungi, now 30, was arrested in Coin, Malaga on Thursday night as he entered a gym in a mall. Spanish authorities, the National Crime Agency, the Merseyside police and the Northwest Regional Organized Crime Unit have been working together to detain the murder suspects.
Ungi was last seen leaving the United Kingdom by ferry less than 24 hours seven years after 18-year-old Winnie Waddington was killed in a street execution. Vinnie was hit by a single explosion with a rifle on Banks Road, Garston, while riding a pile on a scrambler bike on July 14, 2015.
READ MORE: Ryan Bate and Luke Kendrick sentenced to life in prison for the murder of Vinnie Waddington
Fueled by adrenaline, Vinnie managed to jump over a garden fence before collapsing and dying from a catastrophic chest injury, while rider Francis Humphries escaped with his life – albeit bleeding from multiple pellet wounds. Two men, Luke Kendrick and Ryan Bate, are few in their life sentences for his murder, with two more decades before they have any chance of parole.
But even with two dangerous killers imprisoned after a trial in Liverpool’s Royal Courts of Justice, Vinnie’s family has received only partial justice.
Winnie’s murder
A photo of Garston’s murder victim, Winnie Waddington, published by his family.
Emergency services rushed to Banks Road in Garston at around 8.45pm on 14 July 2015, following reports of a crash between a gray Audi and a scrambled bicycle. Once at the scene, officers found Vinnie in a garden on the road with catastrophic chest injuries.
He was taken to University Hospital in Royal Liverpool, but was later pronounced dead. On July 15, police said the shooting was a “cold-blooded targeted attack.”
DCI’s Gail Rooney said: “The investigation is at an early stage and extensive investigations are underway to identify any potential motives and identify those responsible. It was a cold-blooded, targeted attack on a residential street that took the life of a young man.
Police cordoned off parts of Banks Road in 2015
“The people responsible for this attack knew exactly what they were doing. These people must be captured – a young man who had to have his life before he was killed and his family is now facing to come to terms with their loss. “
They added that the offenders are believed to have fled to Blackburn Street or through the industrial area.
His family describes Winnie as “not the type to go out and cause trouble,” with his father saying, “When Vincent died, I died with him.”
Ungi spotted by video surveillance at the ferry terminal in Dover
CCTV footage showing David Ungi, then 24, passing guard at the Dover ferry terminal in 2015. Ungi is wanted for alleged links to the shooting of Winnie Waddington.
David Ungi Jr., 24, at the time of the shooting, was spotted by CCTV cameras just 18 hours after Winnie’s murder. He was photographed walking calmly through Doverie’s ferry terminal and thought to be traveling to Amsterdam.
The footage led detectives to believe he might be involved, and Merseyside police and the National Crime Agency have launched a search. The NCA described Ungi as a “very dangerous man” and called on anyone who knew where he was to contact them.
Winnie Waddington murder trial
Luke Kendrick and Ryan Bate
Ryan Bate and Luke Kendrick were unanimously convicted by a jury in Liverpool’s Royal Courts of Justice after denying the murder of Vinnie, who was shot down by a scrambled motorcycle and shot dead on Banks Road on July 14. Bate was sentenced to life in prison with a minimum of 24 years, while Kendrick received a minimum sentence of 25 years.
In front of the full public gallery, Judge Mr. Judge Timothy said “we will never know” who drove the car that hit Vinnie and who fired the fatal shot. He said: “None of my words can express the grief and the feeling of heavy loss he suffered and will continue to suffer from his family in his untimely death.”
Prosecutors said the fact that the murder was public and in broad daylight was aggravating. Prosecutor Nigel Power, QC, said: “Whether it was a strictly group activity or not, the action in fear of violence must be balanced against the general background here.
The court heard statements from the victim describing Vinnie as “not the type to go out and create problems”, while a letter from his college said the 18-year-old was “polite, respectful and intelligent”.
Among the statements read was one of Vinnie’s father, who said: “When Vincent died, I died with him. When I close my eyes, nightmares come. “
Speaking from the dock, Kendrick said, “I can’t be the devil to listen to all this.” When he was taken out of court during the break, he smiled and gave a thumbs-up to the victim’s family.
The court was told that Kendrick had 25 previous convictions for 44 crimes and was released from prison two weeks before the murder. His first conviction for criminal damage came when he was just 12 years old.
Bate was convicted of a heroin dealer who was arrested for three years in 2012 for possession of cannabis, heroin and cocaine, and also has convictions for criminal damage and possession of drugs, as well as for heavy vehicles. This was his first detention in 2010.
Defense attorney John McDermott, QC, representing Bate, said his client was not “the main driver” in planning Vinnie’s death. He asked the judge to “moderate” the sentence as much as he could.
Defending Kendrick, Charles Miskin, QC, said his client had a “shockingly poor childhood” with a “long and complicated history of trauma, substance abuse and disorder.”
He suggests that Kendrick’s personality traits “destroy all areas of his life.”
Ungi finally caught up seven years later
David Ungi, 30, was wanted for his alleged role in the 2015 murder of 18-year-old Winnie Waddington in Liverpool (Image: National Crime Agency)
David Ungi was captured and arrested by police in Malaga after seven years on the run.
On Thursday, May 6, Ungi was caught entering a gym at a shopping center in Coin, Malaga. Officers found a 9mm Ruger firearm and ammunition in a backpack. Ungi is also wanted in connection with the supply of heroin in the Liverpool area.
Extradition proceedings are ongoing after he appeared in court in Malaga yesterday and was remanded in custody.
Steve Reynolds, regional manager of the National Crime Agency in Spain, said: “Ungi is a very dangerous man and his arrest is good news for communities in both Liverpool and Spain. These arrests would not have been possible without close cooperation between the police forces in the United Kingdom and our law enforcement colleagues in Spain and Portugal.
“There are still a number of fugitives on our list of most wanted, and they need to know that we will never give up and we are never far behind.
Detective Chief Inspector Kat Cummings said: “The Merseyside police remain ruthless in their pursuit of criminals and will not leave a stone unturned. We will continue to work closely with other law enforcement agencies, both in the United Kingdom and abroad, to track down those wanted for the most serious crimes and bring them to justice. “
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