Rapper Ghetts faces further dangerous driving charges

The rapper Ghetts is facing further charges of dangerous driving on the day he allegedly killed a young man in a hit-and-run collision.

The award-winning musician, whose real name is Justin Clarke-Samuel, allegedly failed to stop after his BMW hit 20-year-old Yubin Tamang on Redbridge Lane, Ilford on 18 October.

Mr Clarke-Samuel, from Woodford, east London, was initially charged with a single count of causing Mr Tamang’s death by dangerous driving.

He now faces two further charges of dangerous driving before and after the crash on 18 October.

It is alleged Mr Clarke-Samuel was driving dangerously in Tavistock Place and other roads in Camden, north London.

Following the collision with Mr Tamang in Ilford at about 23:30 GMT, it is alleged Mr Clarke-Samuel continued to drive dangerously in Worcester Crescent, Redbridge, on the journey back to his home in Woodford.

Police attended the defendant’s address in Woodford early the next day.

The black BMW, allegedly registered and insured in the defendant’s name, was said to have been significantly damaged.

On Monday, Mr Clarke-Samuel appeared at the Old Bailey by videolink from Pentonville prison wearing a plain, grey short-sleeved T-shirt.

He spoke to confirm his name as members of Mr Tamang’s family watched in the court, having travelled from Nepal.

Judge Nigel Lickley KC remanded him in custody and set a plea hearing for 8 December.

Ghetts is a Mercury Prize-nominated grime MC, rapper and songwriter who has had high profile musical collaborations with major acts including Stormzy, Ed Sheeran and Skepta.

He won the Best Male Act at the Mobo Awards in 2021 and received the Mobo Pioneer award in 2024 for his “significant contribution to British black culture”.