Promoter defends awards after gun fight

A music promoter today defended an award ceremony which ended in violence when a woman was shot in the stomach.

The 24-year-old City worker was gunned down as rival gangs exchanged shots outside the Barbican Exhibition Centre.

Police said the woman, thought to have been an innocent passer-by, is recovering after surgery for a gunshot wound to the chest.

Today the organiser of the Urban Music Awards denied that the shooting was the result of a row that began at the ceremony.

Jordan Kensington said: "Whoever fired those shots did not go to the ceremony and we are not responsible."

He added: "It's terrible what happened to the woman but it has nothing to do with us."

Detectives said at least seven shots were fired on Tuesday shortly after midnight. Three men were later arrested, one of whom was said to be wearing a bulletproof vest. A gun was also recovered.

John Begley, 48, whose flat is nearby, said: "I saw two girls. They seemed to have fallen over. They looked scared."

Detectives from the City of London and the Met's Operation Trident are investigating.