UK Rapper Ghetts Pleads Guilty in Fatal Hit-and-Run Case

UK rapper and actor Justin Clarke-Samuel, known professionally as Ghetts, has pleaded guilty to causing the death of 20-year-old student Yubin Tamang in a hit-and-run collision in Ilford on 18 October.

Prosecutors told the Old Bailey that the crash occurred shortly after 11.30pm as Tamang, a Nepali national, was crossing the road in a 30mph zone. Ghetts was allegedly driving at more than 60mph and failed to stop after the impact. Tamang died in hospital two days later. His parents, who had travelled from Nepal, attended the court hearing from the public gallery, according to Sky News.

The rapper also admitted to dangerous driving in multiple areas of London prior to the fatal collision, including Tavistock Place in Bloomsbury and parts of Camden, Islington and Hackney.

Appearing via videolink from Pentonville prison, the 41-year-old entered his pleas while wearing a green polo shirt. He has been held in custody since first appearing at Barkingside Magistrates’ Court on 27 October. He has now been disqualified from driving, though the length of the ban has not yet been determined.

Judge Mark Lucraft KC confirmed that Ghetts will receive a custodial sentence, which will be set when he returns to court on 12 February 2026.

Detective Inspector Mark Braithwaite of the Metropolitan Police’s Serious Collision Investigation Unit said the guilty pleas marked “a step towards justice,” adding that “split-second decisions behind the wheel can have devastating, life-changing consequences.”

Police located Ghetts’s damaged BMW near his Woodford home hours after the collision. The vehicle had a smashed windscreen and a missing wing mirror cover.

The artist was also charged on 4 December with causing death by careless driving while over the alcohol limit. He did not enter a plea to that allegation or to a second count of dangerous driving.

Ghetts is a two-time Mercury Prize nominee, recognised for his albums Conflict of Interest (2021) and On Purpose, With Purpose (2024). His career includes MOBO and Ivor Novello nominations and a role in the Netflix series Supacell.