The stepson of celebrity gangster Dave Courtney was 'shot through the eye by his uncle in a cold blooded execution,’ a court heard today.
Approximately two weeks before cagefighter and drug dealer Genson Courtney, 23, was shot getting into a car outside his girlfriend’s South East London address he had ‘battered’ his stepfather on Plumstead Common, jurors were told.
The court heard how Genson Courtney also wanted to sette scores with other members of his family, in particular his uncle, David Pinto, who he claimed owed him £1,100.
After the fight with his stepfather, Genson Courtney called Pinto and demanded the money back, threatening to terrorise his friends.
He then went to Pinto’s home and the door was answered by Pinto’s partner, who was there with their children.
Genson Courtney was at the front door shouting for 15 minutes, claiming he should have something from the house to settle the debt.
He also sent threatening text messages to Pinto.
Jonathan Rees, QC, prosecuting said Genson Courtney also had a grudge against Pinto because he had once thrashed him in front of his friends for playing truant.
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He said: ‘Against this background the prosecution suggest that the motive behind the killing was that David Pinto was concerned that Genson Courtney was after him and sought to eliminate the threat he posed.’
Genson Courtney was found slumped in his Volkswagen Golf outside his girlfriend’s house in Greenwich, on July 3, 2011.
Writer: The victim's stepfather is former gangster-turned writer Dave Courtney
‘The bullet travelled through the eye socket and into the brain, lodging at the rear of the skull.
‘It caused a fatal injury resulting in his death some five hours later,’ the prosecution said.
‘The shooting had the hallmarks of a cold blooded execution.
‘The evidence suggests the gunman was lying in wait for Mr Courtney as he left his girlfriend’s flat to get into her car which was parked on the road outside.
‘The gunman managed to get very close to his target and fired only one shot to the head; it seems that a getaway car was waiting nearby.’
The court heard there were no witnesses to the killing or CCTV footage and the prosecution will rely on circumstantial evidence to prove the case.
David Pinto, 33, and Robert Bleach, 46, both of Greenwich, south-east London, deny murdering him on July 3, 2011.
The court heard how on June 22, 2011, Genson Courtney had woken ‘in a bad mood’ and had got into an argument with his stepfather about the mortgage payments on Camelot, the family home in Plumstead.
Mr Rees said of Dave Courtney, 54: ‘He is a man who in the past has courted media attention and had a reputation as a former gangster well-connected in the criminal underworld.’
The two men went to the nearby common and ‘Genson Courtney punched his stepfather, knocking him to the ground’, said Mr Rees.
Jennifer Courtney, the victim's mother and sister of Pinto, the man accused of murdering his nephew
‘In total, he hit Dave Courtney three times before he drove off leaving him bloodied and battered.’
Later that day, he was stopped from striking Dave Courtney with a golf club saying: ‘Do you remember when you knocked me out in the past?’
Genson Courtney was the son of Jennifer Pinto and took Courtney’s name when his mother separated from his father and began a relationship with the gangland celebrity.
Dave Courtney has written several books about his life of crime with some of the legends of the underworld and has had bit parts in several films.
At the time of his death, Genson Courtney had a long list of convictions and was jailed for six years for rape in 2006.
Some of the jail time he served overlapped with his stepfather, and while he was inside Genson told his relative he wanted to get physically bigger so he could rob drug dealers when he got out.
He was dealing drugs at the time of his death and was making over £1,000 a week.
Mr Courtney was also training every day at his local gym and taking steroids to bulk up his body.
He confessed to taking money from dealers before he died, and was in dispute with some traffickers who were selling on his patch.
The trial was adjourned until Thursday.
Jonathan Rees, QC, prosecuting, said Mr Courtney was shot as he was getting into his car outside his girlfriend's flat in Greenwich, pictured