Second victim dies after O2 Academy Brixton crush at Asake gig

A second woman has died after fans forced their way into a gig at Brixton Academy, causing a crush.

Gabrielle Hutchinson, 23, who was working as a contracted security provider at the concert from Afrobeats star Asake on Thursday evening (December 15), died in hospital in the early hours of Monday morning.

It comes after mother-of-two Rebecca Ikumelo, 33, from Newham, east London, died in hospital on Saturday. 

A third woman, aged 21, still remains in hospital in a critical condition. Eight people were initially taken to hospital after a crowd were able to force their way into the show, which led to mass overcrowding and the show being cancelled half way through.

Chief Superintendent Colin Wingrove, the policing commander for Lambeth and Southwark, said: “It is devastating news that a second person has lost their life following the events on Thursday. I wish to express my heartfelt condolences to Gabrielle’s family at this unimaginably difficult time.”

The Metropolitan Police has now launched an investigation to the tragic incident, which involves examining a “vast” amount of social media footage and body cameras worn by police officers at the scene.

The Metropolitan Police previously confirmed that its officers, the London Ambulance Service and London Fire Brigade were called to the scene at around 9.30pm on Thursday.

An announcement from inside the venue at the time informed fans: “The reason we have to stop the show is because they have breached the doors. 3,000 people have broken the doors outside and because of security the police have asked us to close the show.”

The announcement added: “This is nothing to do with us. There are people who’ve breached the door. They have broken in and security are trying to help with it.”

The crush incident has also been referred to the police watchdog, the Independent Office for Police Conduct, which said it was assessing footage.