A record producer who was once on the “most wanted” list in his native Sweden was gunned down in front of his screaming wife and child in London on Christmas Eve, new reports said.
Flamur Beqiri, 36 — also the brother of former Real Housewives of Cheshire star Missé Beqiri — was shot up to 10 times as his horrified family watched outside their nearly $2 million home in Battersea, southwest London around 9 p.m. Tuesday, police told Metro UK.
The gunman took off and Beqiri was treated by a doctor and nurse who lived nearby — but it was too late. He was pronounced dead on scene.
Authorities are probing whether Beqiri was killed in revenge over his Swedish crime connections — as media outlets in the country reported that his murder was “linked to criminal networks” there.
“We believe Flamur may possibly have been involved in some criminality in Sweden, and are in liaison with our Swedish counterparts to try to understand what, if any, incidents there may have been that might have led to someone seeking retribution against Flamur in the UK,” Metropolitan Police Detective Chief Inspector Jamie Stevenson told Metro.
The father of two young children, including a newborn baby, was “named as one of Sweden’s most wanted men” in 2008 after detectives claimed he was part of a ring that moved about $2.6 million worth of cannabis into Scandinavia, according to the report.
At the time, authorities said they believed Beqiri fled a bust at the border wearing no shoes, but later dropped the drug charges, according to the report. Instead, he was found guilty of illegally handling smuggled goods, including cigarettes, and given a suspended sentence.
Authorities in London are working with Swedish police, because “several” of Beqiri’s former associates and friends were killed since he moved to the UK three years ago, a source told Sydsvenskan newspaper, translated by Metro.
No arrests had been made in connection to Beqiri’s death by Friday, but authorities are conducting a murder investigation.
“Work is ongoing to determine what the possible motive could be, and while we retain an open mind, we are considering that this is a targeted attack,” Stevenson told Metro. “While I am mindful of concerns from the local community, we do not believe at this stage that there is any ongoing risk to members of the public.”
“Flamur’s family, his wife and very young child, bore witness to this horrific attack and are coming to terms with having their world turned upside down,” he added. “I ask that their privacy is respected at this terrible time.”
