Give armed police more legal protection, says Met boss after officer acquitted by Chris…

October 23, 2024, 7:06 am | Updated: October 23, 2024, 07:23

The Met police chief is pushing to protect armed police officers from prosecution amid concerns about the impact of criminal investigations on firearms officers following the trial over the death of Chris Kaba.

Mark Rowley wants armed police officers not to be prosecuted for shootings unless prosecutors can prove the officer in question dropped out of training.

Rowley also wants the investigation to be expedited so that officers are less mired in criminal investigations and disciplinary proceedings, the Times reported.

He called the accountability system “broken” and said he fears it could lead to a loss of morale among firearms officers.

Meanwhile, the home secretary is reviving an earlier Conservative review into how armed officers are held to account after shootings.

Read more: The Met Police shooter was cleared of Chris’ murder. Kaba was forced into hiding after gangsters put a £10,000 bounty on his head

Read more: Chris Kaba was a “core member” of one of London’s most dangerous gangs who “shot” his rival just days before his death.

It came after a jury took just three hours to acquit firearms officer Martyn Blake of the September 2022 shooting death of suspected violent gangster and gunman Chris Kaba.

The acquittal raised questions about why Blake was prosecuted in the first place and why the court allowed his name to be used publicly.

On Tuesday it was revealed that Kaba’s former gang ’67’ had put a £10,000 bounty on Mr Blake’s head following the shooting. He has now gone into hiding.

The Independent Office for Police Conduct is separately examining whether Mr Blake remains at risk of disciplinary action, which could result in him being dismissed from the force.

Prosecuting the officer who shot Chris Kaba was a “catastrophic waste of resources,” says the defense attorney

Keir Starmer declined to comment on the jury’s decision in the trial, but told reporters his government would take over the accountability review launched by the previous Tory government.

When Suella Braverman was interior minister in 2023, she promised to review the way firearms officers who fire fatal shots are held accountable.

Changes touted by the previous government included plans to allow suspended officials to make quicker decisions and provide more clarity to victims.

Tory ministers were also considering raising the threshold for prosecuting firearms officers.

En route to the Commonwealth Heads of Government meeting in Samoa, Starmer told reporters: “We will take this up and complete the accountability review because it is important that the public has confidence in the police, including of course the armed police.” “

Caller Milad answers the Chris Kaba case

The Prime Minister added: “It’s also important that the police know that we trust them to do a very difficult job, so we will take that on.”

“The Home Secretary will make a statement tomorrow informing the House of Representatives where we have come with this review. Therefore, further details will be available to you tomorrow (Wednesday).”

Blake, 40, was on trial at the Old Bailey after he shot the 24-year-old through the windscreen of an Audi Q8 in Streatham, southeast London, on September 5, 2022.

The car had been used as a getaway vehicle in a shootout the night before and was surrounded by police cars in Kirkstall Gardens after an officer recognized its license plate.

Mr. Kaba drove back and forth trying to force himself free, which, Blake told jurors, made him believe one of his colleagues was dying, so he opened fire to stop the car.

He was acquitted of murder on Monday.

The pre-trial motions, according to The Sun, alleged that those associated with the 67 Gang, of which Kaba was a core member, wanted to kill a police officer in retaliation for the acquittal.

Sergeant Blake’s lawyer, Patrick Gibbs KC, quoted an intelligence report on the bounty as saying: “The sum offered was £10,000.” . in exchange for Martyn Blake’s personal information, including addresses and vehicle registration numbers.

“The threat of harm was directed at both Mr Blake and his family.”

A former colleague explained: “Martyn will be looking over his shoulder for the rest of his life.”

Supt Ross McKibbin, of the Met’s counter-terrorism command, said: “In almost 30 years of service, I have never been so concerned about the welfare of an officer.”

Kaba was a “core member” of one of London’s most dangerous criminal gangs and was said to have been directly linked to two shootings in the six days before he was shot dead by police.

The 24-year-old is said to have shot a rival in the legs at a nightclub six days before his death in September 2022 and would have been tried for attempted murder had he survived.

He was also found to have gunshot marks on his sleeve and a balaclava in his pocket on the night he was killed by a police gunman, presumably evidence of his involvement in a second shooting the night before had been.

He had a previous conviction for weapons possession and the Audi he was driving when he was killed was linked to three previous firearms incidents within five months.