'My son was shot dead by his own brother in pointless row over trainers'

Zikel Bobmanuel, 31, was killed by his half-brother, Rumaal Ingram, 36, in Openshaw, Manchester, during a row over trainers - and left behind his devastated mum Justina

A mother has opened her heart over the grief she's endured since her only son was killed by his own half-brother - in an argument over a pair of trainers.

Zikel Bobmanuel, 31, was shot dead by his half-brother, Rumaal Ingram, 36, in an attack outside Zikel’s family home. The spot where he died must be passed almost daily by his devastated mother, Justina, but she cannot bear to look at it.

Justina, 52, from Manchester, says she is devastated that a boy she welcomed into her family - Ingram - has now been responsible for killing her beloved son. Just one week earlier, Ingram had hugged her at her father’s funeral.

Recruitment consultancy owner Justina, from Manchester, says: “Zikel and Rumaal were half-brothers and were very close as children. They drifted a bit later on, but I could never have imagined in my worst nightmare that Rumaal would take my son from me. Zikel ran his own clothing business, and Rumaal was wearing one of Zikel’s coats when he killed him. I’d buried my own father the week before, and Rumaal came to the funeral. He helped to fill the grave. Days later, he killed my son.

“Zikel’s death was so senseless, and it has ripped our family apart. I only hope our tragedy can make people aware how devastating violence can be. I cannot even look at the place where Zikel died. I have flashbacks to him lying in the road. His youngest son was just six weeks old when he died. Ingram has left children without a father and a mother without a son.”

Zikel and Rumaal shared the same father and were raised as brothers. Justina says: “As a little boy, Rumaal was often in my home, I welcomed him. Even after I split with their dad, the boys stayed in touch. As adults they drifted a little, and we heard Rumaal was getting into trouble.

“I was really proud of Zikel, he was my only child. He was good at school, his teachers said he was helpful and kind. Later he worked as a civil engineer and had also started his own online clothing company, which he named after his daughter. He’d even gifted a coat to Rumaal which he was wearing on the day he killed him.

“Zikel had a big heart, and he did anything for his friends. He was handsome too and had no shortage of girlfriends. He’d just settled down and had a baby son, six weeks before he died.”

In March 2023, Zikel visited Justina, to help clear out his late grandfather’s house. Rumaal Ingram had attended the funeral the previous week. Justina says: “Zikel was arguing on the phone. He’d given five pairs of trainers to a friend, Emmanuel Onasanya, who ran a cleaning business, charging £20 per pair. Because Zikel took a couple of months to collect his trainers, the price went up to £30 a pair.

“Zikel was happy to pay the agreed charge, but refused to pay the higher one and Onasanya was arguing back. Then for some reason, Rumaal got involved and threatened to shoot Zikel. Obviously we didn’t take it seriously; it was a minor spat over trainers, and it had nothing at all to do with Rumaal, apart from the fact that he knew both men.

“Besides, Rumaal was family. I would never have imagined he had a gun, or that he would shoot his own brother.”

Zikel left the house to meet his brother and a short time later, Justina heard a popping noise which she did not associate with a gunshot. She says: “Zikel didn’t come back, and I started to worry. I went outside and there were blue lights at the bottom of the street. I ran down there, I just knew. But there was a cordon in place.”

Justina later learned Zikel had died in the street after being shot by Rumaal who then left the scene. Justina says: “Zikel’s body was in the street until 11pm that night and I couldn’t bear the thought of him being alone. I begged the police to let me see him but I will never forget seeing my son like that.” Zikel was buried with his grandfather, Bob.

A trial at Manchester Crown Court heard how a bullet was fired into the ground, before it "fragmented" and ricocheted hitting Zikel in the neck and killing him. Ingram denied intending to kill or seriously harm, claiming he had brought the gun to only as a threat and fired it as a "warning" to "scare" Zikel.

The court also heard that two months earlier, Ingram had been at the scene of another shooting. Four shots were fired into a house in Halifax, West Yorkshire, on January 29, where a woman and her children were present.

Ingram was not the gunman but he was seen "filming" the shooting on a mobile phone. He was only arrested for this offence after being charged with Zikel’s murder. He pleaded guilty to possessing a firearm and ammunition with intent to endanger life.

Onasanya said he had no idea that Ingram had a gun or that he knew a shooting was to take place. The court heard Onasanya "accepts" he had driven to the scene with Ingram although said he had "no idea there was going to be violence". Prosecutors alleged that Onasanya "must have known and did know that a gun would be brought to the scene".

After the shooting, Onasanya got back into the car. But a few minutes later he was reported to have returned to the scene and took photos of Zikel on the floor at a time when he was already dead or "very close to it". Onasanya was acquitted of manslaughter. Ingram pleaded guilty to manslaughter and was acquitted of murder.

In her statement to the court, Justina said: "Every time I have a bath I hear a pop noise, every time I am in my garden, I can see my son lay on the floor, every time I sit in my living room, I can see my son lay in his coffin. I can’t even go down the street where it happened, I can’t even look in that direction because all I see is my son lying there.

"I don’t know whether to move or stay, so I have his memories in the house. I feel guilty for not getting out of the bath sooner, I feel guilty for not trying to stop him going out of the house and I should have tried harder. I am constantly playing it in my mind as I go through the terrible sequence of the event, and I just hope he didn’t suffer."

Sentencing, Judge Tina Landale said that Ingram, who has previous convictions for violent disorder and assisting an offender, was a dangerous criminal. She said a life sentence was necessary to protect the public. Ingram was jailed in June for life and will serve a 16-year minimum sentence. But Justina says: “I felt totally let down by the court process. They both left my son to die in the street. I don’t feel we’ve had justice at all.”

She went on: “Nothing will bring my son back. Nothing will ease my pain," but stresses: “I am speaking out against violence on our streets. If it saves one life, then that is some comfort to me.”