Rupert Ross and accomplice jailed for a minimum of 30 years for fatal gun attack outside Wandsworth prison A former public schoolboy has been jailed for 30 years after he dressed up as a lawyer and shot dead a man outside Wandsworth prison, London. Rupert Ross, 30, whose family include a Cambridge academic and a barrister, shot the man five times in May 2009 over a drug feud. The former Dulwich College pupil, whose life was blighted by drugs, had been known to the police since he was 16 for a string of offences. Ross killed Darcy Austin-Bruce, 20, in an attack of "breathtaking audacity", the Old Bailey heard. Ross and Leon De St Aubin, a London firefighter who drove a moped on which the pair made their escape, were on Thursday jailed for at least 30 years after being found guilty of murder. The three friends fell out over drugs. Ross and De St Aubin believed that Austin-Bruce and another man had been behind a gun attack on a car in which they were travelling. Days later, after finding out that Austin-Bruce would be visiting Wandsworth prison at about 2pm, they donned suits and approached their intended victim. Ross shot him three times in the back, once in the stomach and once in the throat. When Ross was arrested at his mother's home in Fulham, police recovered body armour with residue from the weapon which matched the bullets that killed Austin-Bruce. Crispin Aylett QC, prosecuting, said it was a murder of "breathtaking audacity". "To anyone who noticed him, the smartly dressed man must have looked like a lawyer making a legal visit to a client in the prison. However, he was wearing a crash helmet. This was, in the most literal sense, an inside job. The killers had been tipped off by someone inside the prison." During a drug rehabilitation programme at a clinic in Boscombe, Dorset, Ross wrote a "life story" in which he said: "I wanted the gangsta lifestyle and ended up dealing again." Stuart Trimmer QC, defending, said: "The previous convictions disclose a depressing cycle relating to drugs. He had the advantage of a good education, a loving family and a mother who spent time and resources to ensure he did well. He has been brought to where he now is as a result of the grip of drugs. It will blight his life and his family's lives." Judge Martin Stephens told the men: "You both carried out a well-prepared and meticulously planned execution of a man who had become your enemy. "You both dressed in what would pass as lawyers' clothes so you did not draw suspicion." Acting Detective Chief Inspector Brian Lucas said after the case: "These men believed that they could get away with killing a man in broad daylight as revenge for a petty argument. "I believe that they had lost sight of reality and now face the consequences of their sad and violent choices." Crime London Gun crime Drugs Vikram Dodd guardian.co.uk © 2011 Guardian News and Media Limited or its affiliated companies. All rights reserved. | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds