A woman who was killed in a shooting outside a north-west London church was among mourners who had come to attend a wake, the head of the church has revealed.

Police were called at about 9.15pm on Saturday to Gifford Road, Brent, where a woman, who has since been named as 46-year-old Michelle Sadio, was pronounced dead at the scene.

Pastor Lawrence Larbie, from the River of Life Elim Pentecostal Church, told MyLondon there was a wake going on inside the church on Saturday night that was due to end just before 10pm.

At around 9.15pm, he said people began running into the building saying “there’s been a shooting, there’s been a shooting”, as it is believed gunshots were fired at the gathering from inside a passing car.

Mr Larbie added: “The whole place was surrounded by police. One person shot in the back, we heard.

“People tended to them before the ambulance arrived. The car just drove through. The victims were people attending the wake. They were probably on their way home.

“It’s shocking. We are really devastated. You are invited to attend the wake and you end up deceased. You’re killed. You’re gone. You’re life is expired just like that.

“It was pandemonium in the building. They came with very deadly, evil intentions to cause death.

“We are just praying for peace on our streets and people should not be afraid. We pray they will apprehend them.”

This is a truly shocking incident that has left a woman dead and two others injured, and I understand the concern this will cause the local community and those across London

Two men, both in their 30s, were also injured in the incident.

One is in hospital in a critical condition while the second man’s injuries are non-life-threatening, the Metropolitan Police said.

Fatal shootings in London are relatively rare. So far this year there have been 103 homicides, of which 11 were shootings – a similar proportion to the two previous years.

The number of times guns are fired, called lethal barrel discharges by police, was 166 in the year to November 2024, down 14.8% on the previous 12 months.

A neighbour, on lives on Gifford Road, told the PA news agency they heard “crying and screaming” as people ran out of the church to tend to the victims.

The neighbour said: “We heard the shooting sound and we thought it was fireworks, we didn’t expect there would be a gun here.

“People came out of the church, they were at a wake and they saw the bodies on the ground.”

Superintendent Tony Josephs, from the Metropolitan Police’s North West Command Unit which covers Brent, said: “This is a truly shocking incident that has left a woman dead and two others injured, and I understand the concern this will cause the local community and those across London.

“I want to reassure people that a team of experienced detectives are already working at pace to piece together the events of last night and identify whoever was responsible for this heinous act of violence.

“If you were in or around Gifford Road at the time of the shooting, or have any information about who was responsible, please get in contact with us.

“A family has been left devastated and we need to work together to provide them with answers.”

No arrests have been made and an investigation is continuing.