Two men have been jailed for more than 30 years each for murdering two people in front of horrified members of the public.

Shkelqim Paja, 36, and his wife’s cousin Arber Fesko, 30, were stabbed 42 times in under four minutes on December 19 2019.

Crime leader Besnik Berisha and his "henchman" Kiziku Tuwizana, who was injured in the killing, then bundled the bodies into two cars from Mill Hill and drove off.

Tuwizana was forced to abandon Mr Paja’s Mercedes car with the body of Mr Fesko in the boot at Scratchwood Open Space, off the A1.

Mr Paja’s body was dumped from Berisha’s van into a hedgerow in Hogg Lane near Elstree Aerodrome.

This Is Local London: A police car guarding the entrance to Scratchwood Open Space in December 2019A police car guarding the entrance to Scratchwood Open Space in December 2019

Following an Old Bailey trial, Berisha, 44, from Friern Barnet, and Tuwizana, 33, of no fixed address, were found guilty this week of double murder.

Sentencing the pair today (July 16), Judge John Hillen QC said: "The quiet streets of this country are not to be used for the lawless exacting of revenge for criminals."

He jailed the men for life, handing Berisha a minimum term of 33 years and Tuwizana at least 31 years.

This Is Local London: Besnik Berisha (left) and Kaziku Tuwisana who have been jailed for more than 30 years each at the Old Bailey. Credit: Met PoliceBesnik Berisha (left) and Kaziku Tuwisana who have been jailed for more than 30 years each at the Old Bailey. Credit: Met Police

Following the guilty verdict, the Metropolitan Police said it believed the stabbings occurred due to a row over a sum of money - around £15,000 - that Berisha owed to Mr Paja.

The Old Bailey heard Mr Paja had become entangled in serious organised crime, having lent his former friend Berisha thousands of pounds.

When he asked for the money back, Berisha recruited "hired muscle" and assembled knives, a Taser and cable ties in a plot to kidnap and kill Mr Paja, it was alleged.

But something went wrong, and the plan was brought forward with Mr Paja and Mr Fesko being stabbed in Courtlands Avenue in Mill Hill.

Police later arrived on the scene near the gates of a school and found two knives and pools of the victims’ blood.

Officers later discovered the bodies of Mr Paja and Mr Fesko and were able to link Berisha and Tuwizana to the murders forensically and with CCTV.

This Is Local London: A forensic tent at the car park at Scratchwood Open Space near Borehamwood. Credit: SWNSA forensic tent at the car park at Scratchwood Open Space near Borehamwood. Credit: SWNS

Related: Pair guilty of murder after bodies were discovered in car boot and bushes

This Is Local London: A map of where the victims were stabbed (blue), where Mr Fesko was found (red) and where Mr Paja was found (yellow). Credit: Met PoliceA map of where the victims were stabbed (blue), where Mr Fesko was found (red) and where Mr Paja was found (yellow). Credit: Met Police

In court, Mr Paja’s widow Rezarta wept as she read out a victim impact statement.

She described meeting her "wonderful" husband at college, saying it was "love at first sight".

Her husband and cousin were snatched away in a "brutal and barbaric" way.

She said: "What makes it even worse is the thought of how they died. My husband was stabbed 28 times across his body then taken and dumped in a ditch."

This Is Local London: A police cordon in Hogg Lane in December 2019A police cordon in Hogg Lane in December 2019

Mr Fesko’s twin brother Seldi called for a maximum sentence for the "evil and cold-blooded" murders.

In a statement, he described his "heartbreak" that his brother was killed and "thrown in the boot of a car like rubbish".