Man jailed after violent assault leads to death of man in Alperton

A man has been jailed for a violent attack which resulted in the death of a man in Alperton.

Abdelaziz Maaroufi, 26 (17.08.97), of Woodside End, Alperton, was sentenced to five-and-a-half years' imprisonment for the manslaughter of Peter Marecheau following a hearing at Croydon Crown Court on Tuesday, 26 September.

Maaroufi has been found guilty of Peter's manslaughter following a trial at Harrow Crown Court on Wednesday, 12 July.

Detective Chief Inspector Linda Bradley of the Met's Specialist Crime Command led the investigation and said:

"This sentencing brings to a conclusion a tragic case - Maaroufi has never explained why he decided to involve himself in this incident and why he resorted to this extreme level of violence.

"Peter's family have not had all the answers that we hoped to get for them but I hope they can take some solace in the fact that Maaroufi has been convicted and jailed for his actions."

The conviction follows a murder investigation that was launched after 67-year-old Peter, known to family and friends as Frankie, died in hospital from injuries sustained during a disagreement about parking.

Police had been contacted by London Ambulance Service [LAS] at 16:20hrs on Friday, 9 September 2022 saying they had taken an injured man to hospital from Abbey Industrial Estate in Alperton.

Officers attended the industrial estate and a crime scene was put in place. They also attended the hospital where Peter was being treated for a life-threatening head injury. Sadly, he died in hospital on Monday, 12 September.

Detectives established that the victim worked at an industrial unit on the estate and had parked his car outside a nearby unit, where the defendant worked. The unwritten rule on the estate was that if a car needed to be moved, someone would toot their horn and the vehicle would be moved.

However, on this day, the owner of the unit sounded his horn three times before Peter emerged from his workshop. An argument broke out between Peter and the owner of the unit. Maaroufi took it upon himself to get involved in the argument and pushed Peter four times. Despite others trying to diffuse the situation and Peter backing away, Maaroufi punched Peter once in the face, causing him to fall backwards onto the floor, which in turn caused a significant head injury.

Following Peter's death, a post mortem examination concluded that he had died as a result of blunt force head injury.

CCTV of the incident showed a Maaroufi arguing with Peter before punching him in the face.

Maaroufi was arrested on suspicion of murder on Monday, 12 September. He admitted being the person involved in this incident, but suggested that he was acting in self-defence.

Maaroufi was charged with murder but was convicted of manslaughter following a trial.