DMU student’s attempted murderers sentenced to 12 years

De Montfort student, Hamza Cato, was attacked by three men last February in what has now been revealed as a mistaken identity shooting.

Hamza, 19, was returning home from Kashmir road when three men mistook him for someone involved in an attack on a “drug house” in Highfields earlier on in the day. The student was shot once, followed by being beaten and stabbed – a vicious attack that nearly left him for dead.

Miraculously, the attack left him with no severe injuries. However, it is thought that he avoided death by a matter of millimetres as the bullet was described to have scraped his head.

Hamza Cato’s three attackers

The 19-year-old’s attackers, all in their early twenties, have been sentenced to 12 years in prison.  Detective Chief Inspector Drew Elliot was quoted by Leicester Mercury after the sentencing:

“This was an unprovoked cowardly attack on an innocent member of the public and a case of mistaken identity. The fact that these three men now face lengthy terms of imprisonment will hopefully allow the victim to put this horrendous attack behind him and start to move on with his life”.

The “drug house” that was attacked, causing the lashing out and mistaken identity shooting of innocent Hamza Cato, was later raided exposing £200,000 of drug money stored inside, resulting in further prosecution for the residents of the address.

Hamza Cato has been contacted for comment.