Reece Salmon, described by loved ones as a devoted father, was a prolific gangster who worked for an international criminal network, the Daily Mail can reveal.
The murder investigation is now entering its second week after the 28-year-old was found suffering from stab wounds outside a £1.55million property on Lloyd Baker Street, Clerkenwell, last Wednesday. He died in hospital the following day.
The killer remains at large, fuelling shock, anger and silence in the affluent Islington neighbourhood, which residents have described as peaceful, quiet and safe.
At about 11.20pm on September 16, residents were jolted by the sudden arrival of police cars and ambulances, their blue lights flashing through the shutters of nearby townhouses.
When the Daily Mail visited this week, a memorial stood opposite the scene, covered with flowers, candles and emotional messages. Bottles and cans of AU Vodka, Courvoisier, Jack Daniel’s, Red Bull, Buzzballs and magnums had also been left at the vigil.
A longtime friend who attended nursery with Mr Salmon said at the memorial: ‘He was the f***ing loveliest guy you’d ever meet. He didn’t have a bad bone in his body, a proper respectful geezer.’
His devastated family released a photograph of him drinking a Pornstar Martini while on holiday and described him as a ‘loving partner and son’ who ‘leaves behind many friends and loved ones’.
However, the Daily Mail can reveal that Salmon had previously been jailed in Britain for a series of gang robberies across London before becoming involved in an international fraud operation in New Zealand linked to a UK-based criminal organisation.
Reece Salmon was stabbed to death in Clerkenwell, Islington, on September 16
Detectives set up a crime scene on Lloyd Baker Street in Islington, north London
Pictures released by New Zealand police show Salmon as a ‘courier’ (left) for a British criminal gang – and when he was deported back to the UK (right)
Salmon, who lived on City Road in Islington, belonged to a moped gang that terrorised London streets while armed with axes, samurai swords and zombie knives.
He and three other men were described as ‘big operators in north London’ after carrying out a series of phone snatchings and robberies across the capital.
In 2019, Salmon pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit robbery in Camden, Islington, Westminster and the City of London. He was sentenced to three years and nine months in prison.
After serving his sentence, he moved to New Zealand, where he became involved in what was described as a serious fraud campaign while working for a UK-based criminal organisation.
He was jailed in New Zealand in June last year for his role in an elaborate NZ$400,000 (£171,000) fraud targeting pensioners aged between 69 and 95. One victim was reportedly conned at a retirement village.
The fraud was conducted by phone internationally by members of the UK gang, with Salmon acting as a ‘courier’ in New Zealand. He collected cash and gold from victims’ homes.
Gang members posed as police officers and persuaded victims to co-operate with what they believed was an undercover investigation.
‘The victims’ assistance involved them withdrawing large amounts of cash from their banks or, in some cases, purchasing gold bullion,’ the judge told Wellington District Court.
According to local media reports, victims took the cash and gold to their homes, where a courier arrived, gave them a codeword and collected the valuables.
Salmon, one of the couriers, took money and gold from 19 victims between July 2024 and early August, often wearing disguises.
He was arrested when one of his victims was asked to buy $170,000 in gold bullion and police intercepted as Salmon arrived to pick it up.
In total, he stole $239,500 in cash and $172,000 in gold.
A widow, who lived alone, said in her victim impact statement that she had $171,000 in gold and $20,000 in cash stolen over four visits.
Salmon pleaded guilty to 15 counts of obtaining cash and gold by deception – and another two charges of attempting to obtain by deception.
He was sentenced to four years in prison, reduced for his guilty pleas and the impact a custodial sentence would have on his partner and daughter, then aged three.
However, he was granted parole in February this year and deported back to Britain.
‘You’re still relatively young. You have the ability to change,’ the judge told him.
‘Clearly since you were a young person you’ve been mixing with a criminal crowd. Your background of offending has made that likely that you will be engaged with others who will lead you into a path of offending.
‘You have the ability to decide on your return to the UK whether you will continue with that type of connection or separate yourself and concentrate on your partner and child. That’s a decision that you have to make.’
Salmon had only been back in Islington for seven months before he was stabbed to death.
Salmon was previously jailed for four years over a string of robberies. He later relocated to New Zealand where he defrauded elderly victims out of $400,000
Pictures show some of the gold that was recovered when Salmon was finally caught in New Zealand
A memorial has been set up for Reece Salmon, with his initials spelled out in balloons and candles
Forensic officers work at the scene on Lloyd Baker Street, where houses are worth up to £2.25million
A collage of images were left of the victim – as friends came by to pay tribute
For much of the last seven days, residents say they have had to sign in and out with police every time they leave their homes as homicide detectives piece together just what happened.
Detectives have been forensically combing the area and interviewing neighbours on Lloyd Baker Street, where homes are worth up to £2.25million, for the last week, but the knifeman is still on the run.
Pictures of him wearing a matching Arsenal kit with his daughter have been left at the memorial, along with his ‘RS’ initials spelled out in candles and flowers.
A friend at the memorial said: ‘I know as much as the police. They obviously don’t have a clue, they’ve been driving everyone mad.
‘I’ve known him for years, I used to go to nursery with him. It’s one of those faces you just see around. Everyone in the area knows him.’
When I asked about his friend’s time in New Zealand, he declined to discuss and walked into the house where Salmon was stabbed in front of. The owner of the house slammed the door shut when we approached.
Others shouted ‘no one is going to tell you anything’.
A neighbour living a few doors down from the fatal stabbing said: ‘It’s absolutely awful. I was in the living room and just saw the flashing lights through the shutters and then all the ambulances showed up and they taped everything up.
‘It’s like something you see on the TV. It’s horrible. It’s a very local area, nothing like this has ever happened.’
Another, a father of one, said: ‘It’s a very quiet residential street. There’s a lot of family houses. The police were there for four or five days, they blocked the road entirely. We were signing in and out every day.
‘They are doing it very thoroughly.
‘Everyone is quite shocked. Hopefully they get him [the killer].’
‘It’s unusual, it’s normally a quiet respectable street. I don’t think he was from this area [of Islington], I think he came from somewhere else and ended up here.’
A woman who lived near where the memorial has been set up said police came and searched her garden, adding: ‘Nobody knows what’s going on.
‘This area is a very quiet area to live, this has never happened. I’ve lived here a long long time, more than 30 years.’
A Post Office worker said: ‘When we came for deliveries, the police closed the road for almost the whole week. It’s very sad.
‘King’s Cross Road is so busy, but as soon as you come up here, it’s so nice and peaceful. It’s beautiful.’
A neighbour who has lived in the area for 40 years said: ‘Everybody is nice to each other and very friendly. This never happens, it’s just a one-off.’
The victim’s family said: ‘We are utterly devastated by this loss.
‘Reece was a loving partner and son, and he leaves behind many friends and loved ones.
‘It is impossible to put our loss into words.’
Chief Superintendent Jason Stewart, who leads policing in the local area, said: ‘This is a tragic incident, and our thoughts remain with the family and friends of the young man who has lost his life.
‘You can expect to see additional officers in the area providing visible reassurance and working with partners to keep the public safe.
‘The victim was found in a residential street, and members of the public may have information of vital importance to our investigation. If you can help, please come forward.’
