A 20-year-old man who fatally stabbed a drug rival has been jailed for life.

Jaydee Dorsett, 20, of Maryland Court, Wood Green, was found guilty at the Old Bailey yesterday of murdering Isaiah Ekpaloba, 18, after a fight broke out in Dorsett’s home on January 9.

Dorsett was today sentenced to life for the murder and will serve a minimum of 12 years before he is eligible for parole. He was also sentenced to four years for attempted wounding with intent, which will be served concurrently.

The court heard how Ekpaloba and an associate, Lamont Roper, 18, had taken a minicab to Dorsett's home with the intention of robbing him of drugs.

Roper, of Warwick Grove, Clapton, was today sentenced to seven and a half years for conspiracy to rob.

He also received three and a half years for both counts of robbery, both to be served concurrently, and was sentenced to three months for not disclosing the PIN on his mobile phone to police.

Shortly after 4pm on January 9, Ekpaloba and Roper broke into Dorsett's address and attacked him. Dorsett sustained several stab injuries during the attack.

During the altercation Ekpaloba sustained injuries and he and Roper fled the scene and attempted to flee in the waiting minicab.

Dorsett pursued the pair and caught up with them as the cab attempted to pull out into the High Road, in Wood Green.

CCTV showed Dorsett, armed with at least one knife, open the front passenger door and make stabbing motions towards Roper who was seated there.

Dorsett then attempted to open the back passenger door where Ekpaloba was seated but only managed to open it partially.

The car took Ekpaloba to North Middlesex Hospital, in Edmonton, where he died at 4.46pm that day.

Police found Dorsett covered in blood inside his own flat. Officers recovered a number of knives - one which had the blade snapped off, indicating the ferociousness of the struggle.

Officers arrested Roper, 18, of Wigan House, in East London, on January 14, and he was subsequently charged with conspiracy to rob Dorsett. He was tried alongside Dorsett and found guilty.

Roper also pleaded guilty on the first day of the trial, July 8, to two separate robbery offences in Finsbury Park train station which took place on April 10, 2014. These did not involve Jaydee Dorsett.

Detective Chief Inspector Dave Whellams of the Homicide and Major Crime Command said: "Whatever the circumstances of that day, Jaydee Dorsett did not need to pursue Isaiah Ekpaloba and Lamont Roper into the street. Dorsett chose to continue the violence by arming himself and attacking the pair as they attempted to flee the scene in a minicab.

"The events of that day show the destructive consequences carrying and using knives can have; one young man has been brutally murdered while another will spend a considerable amount of time in prison as a result of his actions."

Isaiah's mother, Grace Aloba, paying tribute to her son, said: “How does a person ever put into words what the impact of losing a child really is, let alone in the manner that Isaiah was taken away from me?

“On January 9, 2015, my eldest son, my baby, was taken away from me in the most horrific way. He was a loving, big-hearted individual, who could light up a room with his big smile and cheeky personality.

“His life was full of promise; he was a talented and well-respected actor at the Chicken Shed theatre company and had appeared on TV and had toured schools talking about the dangers of knife crime with them.

“He was a well-liked boy who loved being the centre of attention, and the best testament of his impact on people was that over 300 people attended his funeral.”