By SCM REPORTER I 7 April 2026
A COLD-BLOODED teen who turned a South London chicken shop into a scene of Christmas Eve carnage has been locked up for three years.
Marwan Khadir, 18, launched a terrifying “two-minute” armed assault on a defenseless staff member after losing his cool over a takeaway order.
The Penge thug pulled a realistic imitation firearm and repeatedly threatened to “shoot and kill” the worker while raining down blows in the middle of the festive rush.
The Nightmare Before Christmas
The horror unfolded on December 24 last year at a takeaway in South London. What started as a complaint about food quickly spiraled into a life-threatening ordeal.
Khadir, of Malcolm Close, was caught on “high-quality” CCTV brandishing the fake weapon and assaulting the victim multiple times.
While most of London was tucking into mince pies, Met detectives were launching a massive manhunt. Using a “fast-paced” mix of financial tracking, CCTV analysis, and phone data, officers tracked the teenager to his lair.
Cops Strike at Dawn
In a dramatic New Year raid on January 2, firearms officers stormed Khadir’s address.
Inside, they discovered the replica handgun used in the attack alongside a stash of fake ammunition. Faced with a mountain of evidence—including the matching clothes he wore during the assault—Khadir was forced to come clean.
He pleaded guilty at Woolwich Crown Court to:
Possession of an imitation firearm with intent to cause fear of violence
Making threats to kill
Assault occasioning Actual Bodily Harm (ABH)
‘Terrifying Ordeal’
Detective Sergeant Amy Cross, who led the hunt, praised the victim’s “remarkable” strength.
”The tireless work by officers… over the Christmas and New Year period is further evidence that policing never stops,” she said. “All our thoughts remain with the victim of this terrifying ordeal—something no one should ever have to go through, let alone at their place of work.”
The sentencing comes as the Met Police ramps up its war on “ghost guns” and replicas. Last year alone, 676 weapons were snatched off the capital’s streets as part of a city-wide crackdown on gun crime.
Khadir was sentenced today to three years behind bars. The jailing of Marwan Khadir highlights the Met’s “zero tolerance” approach to imitation weapons, which are often indistinguishable from the real thing in the heat of a crime.
