A fraudster and his sidekick have been jailed for at least 35 years for murdering a 71-year-old businesswoman in a £4.6 million scam to plunder her life savings.
Louise Kam, from Potters Bar, was strangled with a hairdryer cord and dumped in a wheelie bin after being lured to a three-bedroom house she owned in Barnet on July 26, 2021.
Kusai Al-Jundi, 25, of Wood End Road, Harrow, and Mohamed El-Abboud, 28, of Gallants Farm Road, Barnet, were found guilty of her murder on January 20 and jailed for life on Wednesday.
In a televised sentencing at the Old Bailey, Judge Mark Lucraft KC handed each of them a minimum term of 35 years in custody.
The judge told Al-Jundi: “From the time you were first put in touch with Louise Kam earlier in 2021, Al-Jundi you told her lie after lie.
“You claimed to be a person of means with the backing of a multi-millionaire girlfriend who was going to fund the acquisition of her properties at a level in excess of the market value, so that Louise could provide homes for her two sons and you take your share.
The duo targeted the trusting mother-of-two, who had previously owned a catering business with her ex-husband before going into rental properties.
She owned two north London properties – the £1.3 million house in Barnet and a shop with three flats in Willesden.
“In fact you had no assets of your own and no rich girlfriend.”
A friend had introduced her to Al-Jundi, who worked at the Yasmeen Sham Restaurant in Willesden and lived with his mother, wife and children in Harrow.
Al-Jundi convinced her he was wealthy and had financial backers and would buy the properties for £4.6 million avoiding tax.
They met her at the Gallant’s Farm Road address to finalise arrangements on July 26 and she was killed there at some point that day.
The following day, Al-Jundi used her phone to send messages pretending she was alive and on holiday, but those who knew her realised these messages were not being sent by her.
Later that day, El-Abboud sold Ms Kam’s BMW and used the money to buy new clothes and posted a TikTok of him gyrating to music in the driveway of the Barnet home.
Ms Kam’s body was placed in a bin and on July 28 moved to Wood End Road in Harrow.
The Judge told Al-Jundi: “You plainly told El-Abboud that you would make a significant amount of money from Louise Kam’s death, and that a share of that money was to be El-Abboud’s reward for killing her.
“A woman of 71 who loved and cared for her sons… suffered brutal injuries at your hands and then with complete disregard, you sought to dispose of her remains.”
In a victim impact statement, Ms Kam’s son Gregory Kam said the family had been left in a state of “disbelief” at what had happened to her and that his mother fell for “the lies of this wolf in sheep’s clothing”.
Mr Kam had warned his mother it could be a scam but she was eager to go ahead, with the encouragement of her friend, jurors heard.
During the trial, prosecutor Oliver Glasgow KC had told the jury that Al-Jundi was “prepared to stop at nothing” and his friend, El-Abboud, was “more than happy” to help in his fraudulent plan.
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