Six individuals have been handed life sentences for the murder of Joanne Penney, an innocent woman who tragically lost her life in a brutal drug gang feud. Ms Penney was shot at a property in Talbot Green, Rhondda Cynon Taf, in March 2025 after answering a knock at the door, becoming an unwitting victim in a conflict over drug territory.
The court heard how the fatal shooting was a planned revenge attack, orchestrated by Renaldo Baptiste from a prison cell. Marcus Huntley, 22, was identified as the gunman, firing the weapon that had been transported from Leicester. Huntley, along with five co-conspirators, was convicted of murder after two extensive trials at Cardiff Crown Court.
Mr Justice Fordham, in sentencing the group, described Ms Penney's death as a "senseless taking" of an "innocent victim in a drugs war." The trials revealed that two rival drug gangs were locked in a turf war centred around the Talbot Green area, specifically the address at Llys Illtyd where the shooting occurred. Weeks before the murder, Huntley and Jordan Mills-Smith, acting on behalf of Leicester drug boss Joshua Gordon, had installed a drug dealer at 10 Llys Illtyd. This dealer was subsequently assaulted and humiliated by a member of a rival gang, prompting discussions of a reprisal attack between Huntley and Gordon.
A gun and ammunition were sourced from the criminal underworld in Leicester and sent to Cardiff to facilitate the planned violence. Following the shooting, Huntley attempted to dispose of the weapon in a Cardiff park before fleeing the city. Mills-Smith also absconded to Suffolk. However, police swiftly moved in, arresting all six individuals within days, with Huntley apprehended in a dramatic police operation on a National Express coach.
The sentences imposed reflect the varying degrees of involvement in the heinous crime. Huntley must serve a minimum of 30 years before being eligible for parole, while Mills-Smith faces a minimum of 27 years. Joshua Gordon, described by the judge as the "dominant member" of the organised crime group, received a minimum term of 32 years. Renaldo Baptiste, who ordered the attack from prison, was given an additional 42 years to his existing sentence, meaning he will not be eligible for parole until 2068, when he will be 81 years old. Melissa Quailey-Dashper, who knocked on the door under the guise of wanting to buy drugs, was sentenced to a minimum of 14 years. Kristina Ginova, Gordon's girlfriend, who destroyed crucial evidence after the shooting, received a minimum of 12 years.
During mitigation, barristers for the defendants argued that there was no intention to kill, only to cause serious harm, and that some were shocked by the tragic outcome. However, the court concluded that their collective actions led directly to the senseless death of Joanne Penney.