Nathan Smith, 28, of Marlborough Road, N19, was sentenced to life in prison for the murder of Takieddine ‘Taki’ Boudhane, 30.
Smith fled the UK the day after the murder, first to Austria, where he remained in hiding for more than a year.
He was added to Europol’s Most Wanted Fugitives list, and officers from the Met’s serious crime manhunt team, known as Op Artemis, collaborated with detectives leading the murder investigation to find him.
Smith was apprehended in Portugal and returned to London on June 3, 2021, where he was charged with murder.
Taki’s mother, Sadie Boudhane, stated that their family will always have a “missing piece.
“It’s difficult to put into words the impact my son’s murder has had on our family,” she said.
“While our son was still lying in the street, this man had already begun making plans to flee the country.”
He refused to accept responsibility for Taki’s death, and as a result, our family had to endure another 17 months of questioning. What happened to him? “Who would do such a heinous thing?” The stress of losing our son, as well as the lengthy police investigation, harmed both my and my husband’s health. My husband died before justice could be served on our son’s murderer.
By refusing to accept responsibility for his actions, this man continued to torment my family.” He subjected us to a crown court trial in which my son was forced to watch his brother’s murder frame by frame, day after day, as the CCTV was played and analysed. Even then, he claimed he felt like the victim and showed no remorse for his actions against my family. He never apologised for what he had done, only that he had PTSD while on the run: on the run because of his own actions, on the run for murdering my child.”
Taki, an Algerian national living in Enfield, was riding his motorcycle as a delivery driver in Finsbury Park on 3 January 2020 when he got into an argument with Smith, who was in a white van, about the nature of his driving.
As Taki got off his moped on Lennox Road, Smith emerged from the van holding a knife and ran towards him, where the argument continued.
The incident appeared to be over when Smith walked back towards his van and Taki towards his moped. Smith, on the other hand, dashed towards Taki, who attempted to flee. He used his crash helmet to defend himself against Smith, who was coming at him with a knife on several occasions.
Taki was fatally stabbed in the chest and, despite chasing Smith towards his van, collapsed on the street. He died at the scene shortly after, despite the efforts of emergency personnel.
“It is heartbreaking to see and hear the pain that this senseless murder has caused those who loved Taki,” said Detective Chief Inspector Neil John, who led the investigation. They have demonstrated tremendous courage by appearing in court every day during what has undoubtedly been the most difficult time of their lives.” Smith is clearly a dangerous individual, and we are relieved he is no longer on our streets, unable to cause further harm.