Brother charged over New Year shootings

The brother of New Year shooting victim Charlene Ellis was today among four men who appeared before magistrates charged with her murder and that of fellow teenager Letisha Shakespeare.

Marcus Junior Ellis, 23, Michael Gregory, 21, Rodrigo Fernando Simms, 19, and 24-year-old Nathan Antonio Martin were all remanded in custody for seven days by magistrates at Birmingham.

The four defendants, who spoke only to confirm their personal details, were each accused of two counts of murder and three counts of attempted murder in relation to the shootings in Aston, Birmingham.

Cousins Charlene, 18 and Letisha, 17, died in a hail of gunfire from a submachine gun outside a party at a hairdresser's salon in the early hours of January 2 this year.

Two other young women, Charlene's twin sister Sophie and Cheryl Shaw, were wounded in the incident in Birchfield Road.

The case against Gregory, of Ryland Street, Ladywood, Birmingham; Ellis, of Devonshire Avenue, Winson Green, also Birmingham; Simms, of Whitehouse Drive and Martin, of St Albans Road, both Smethwick, was transferred to Birmingham Crown Court for a preliminary hearing on November 20.

All the defendants were accused of the murders of Letisha and Charlene and the attempted murders of Sophie Ellis, Cheryl Shaw and Leon Harris.

The mothers of the dead girls, Marcia Shakespeare and Beverley Thomas, were present in court for the 25-minute hearing, sitting just feet from the defendants in the glass-panelled dock.

Sophie Ellis and Arthur Ellis, the father of Marcus and the twin sisters, was also sitting in the public gallery.

There were no applications for bail and reporting restrictions were not lifted.