The victim of a shooting in New Addington earlier this week was Julius Cools, the father of Jermaine Cools, one of Croydon’s tragic teenaged victims of knife crime.
Victim: restaurant owner Julius Cools was rushed to hospital after Monday night’s shooting
Jermaine Cools was 14 when he was stabbed and killed near West Croydon Station in November 2021.
His father, who runs a Caribbean restaurant in South Norwood, has been a prominent campaigner against the culture of gangs and knife crime that led to his son losing his life.
This has also seen him single-handedly tackle a knife-wielding thief when they tried to attack a young customer in his shop; a video of the incident was published by national newspapers and went viral on social media.
Emergency services received reports of a shooting on Godric Crescent, near King Henry’s Drive in New Addington, just before 11.40pm on Monday, December 23.
Julius Cools, 50, was taken to hospital by the London Ambulance Service “as a priority”, where his condition was assessed as non-life threatening.
Crime scene: 14-year-old Jermaine Cools was murdered in West Croydon three years ago
According to reliable sources, Cools has since been discharged from hospital and was able to spend Christmas at home with family and friends.
No arrests have been made, as police enquiries continue.
The Metropolitan Police was unavailable to answer any media inquiries today, as the Scotland Yard press office is closed for Christmas.
The Met had previously confirmed that a 50-year-old man had been shot on Monday in New Addington and taken to hospital for treatment.
“An investigation is underway… There has been no arrest and enquiries continue by specialist officers,” the Met said.
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Julius Cools is a remarkable Black Businessman and father, who luckily survived an attempt on his life. This occurred not long following the death of his son, Jermaine Cools, which no parent should ever have to experience.
Cools has campaigned relentlessly to stem, in particular the flow of youth crime, in Croydon, and Greater London as a whole.
We need more brave persons, especially BLACK MEN, of similar tenacity and determination to quell the rising crime epidemic affecting Great Britain.
I saw him tackle a knife man who walked into his restaurant and threatened one of his customers. He disarmed the youth and reasoned with him. Maybe the youth learnt something that day that changes his life.