A former head of the Met Police has urged the law ‘to give the benefit of the doubt’ to armed police after an officer was yesterday found not guilty of murdering Chris Kaba.
Met firearms officer Martyn Blake, 40, walked free from the Old Bailey on Monday after a jury cleared him in just three hours following a near-three-week trial.
Sgt Blake, also known as officer NX121, told the court he had feared for his life when he shot and killed Kaba in South London in 2022.
The 24-year-old had tried to ram his way out of a police stop in an Audi Q8 that police believed was linked to a firearms incident the night before.
While not revealed to the jury at the time, it came to light on Tuesday that Kaba was one of London’s most feared gangsters, linked to two shootings in the days before he died.
Former head of the Met Police Bernard Hogan-Howe has urged the law ‘to give the benefit of the doubt’ to armed police after the Chris Kaba verdict
Met Police marksman Martyn Blake, 40, was cleared at the Old Bailey of the murder of Chris Kaba, 24, who was fatally shot in Streatham, south-east London, on September 5, 2022
Speaking today in the House of Lords following the verdict, Lord Hogan-Howe, who served as the Met Police Commissioner from 2011 to 2017, asked whether Home Secretary Yvette Cooper would now consider any change to the law in light of the case and ensure armed officers are ‘given the benefit of the doubt’.
He said: ‘It’s a tragedy that a man died and for his family that a son died. But despite the fact…that Mr Kaba was to be indicted and charged for a shooting only days before he was shot dead, that he was linked to a person shot in May this year and that the vehicle he was travelling in was linked to a further shooting, it took a jury only three hours – not knowing this – to find the officer not guilty.
The scene in Kirkstall Gardens, Streatham Hill, south London, where Mr Kaba was shot by armed officers from the Metropolitan Police following a pursuit
Footage of the moment armed officers ran towards Mr Kaba’s car which was hemmed in. He tried to drive away
Mr Kaba’s vehicle was hemmed in by marked and unmarked police cars during the incident where he was shot through the windscreen
‘Police officers are among the very few who carry firearms. There are 67 million people in this country, but there are only around 3,000, on our behalf, who will go forward to face someone who is armed and dangerous.
‘They do not go to work each day to kill anyone and it does seem the system does not give them the benefit of doubt that was given by the jury in this case.
‘I do wonder if the minister will consider how the legal system can give the benefit of doubt to these brave men and women who…in a matter of as much as a fraction of a second have to make the most awful decision they will perhaps have to make.’
Baron Toby Harris further asked why these cases have to ‘drag out over several years’ and what can be done to expedite similar cases.
In response, Lord David Hanson, who is Minister of State agreed with Lord Harris and said it was ‘in the interest of society as a whole that when difficult decisions are taken…these matters are resolved as speedily as possible.’
He added that it was ‘absolutely vital that police have the confidence to exercise their duties,’ but caveated that by saying it had to be done in a way that is ‘accountable, with proportion and under the rule of law’.
Lord Hanson added: ‘We need to make sure to build community confidence in policing, but ensure the police have confidence in their operational skills and confidence to do their duty, because at the end of the day they are protecting society.’
Home Secretary Yvette Cooper is said to be giving a statement on the implications of the cast this week, as police campaigners called for a review of the law around armed officers
Metropolitan Police Commissioner Mark Rowley said the ‘system holding police to account is broken’ after firearms officer Martyn Blake was put on trial for murder because he shot driver Chris Kaba
He said a statement from the Home Secretary is expected this week reflecting on the implications of the case.
On Monday, Met Police Commissioner Sir Mark Rowley said ‘the system holding police to account is broken’.
He continued: ‘I worry about the lack of support officers face for doing their best, but most of all, I worry for the public.
‘The more we crush the spirit of good officers, the less they can fight crime that risks London becoming less safe.’
Lord Hogan-Howe’s appearance at the House of Lords came just hours after it emerged Blake is unable to return to work despite being cleared of murder, as he awaits a potential police watchdog misconduct hearing.
Despite his swift acquittal and major questions for the CPS over whether he should have been charged, Mr Blake now faces the prospect of a disciplinary hearing brought by the Independent Office for Police Conduct.
His suspension by the Met was immediately lifted last night, but it could be months before the watchdog makes the decision whether to proceed with a misconduct hearing.
Blake is also said to live in hiding, fearing for his life and his family after a £10,000 bounty was offered in revenge for the death of Kaba to anyone prepared to kill him.
Sgt Blake has been suspended from work since the night of the shooting on Sunday, September 5, 2022.
Tory MP Neil O’Brien said today: ‘After two years suspended, a police officer who volunteered to be in harm’s way tackling Britain’s most dangerous criminals got cleared in court. Why on earth are IOPC to ‘consider whether Mr Blake should face a disciplinary hearing?’
One former armed officer said: ‘As someone who carried a firearm in specialist roles for years I simply can’t understand how he was charged. The officer now faces a malign misconduct hearing process. The IOPC are simply unfit for purpose’.
While Tory leadership hopeful Robert Jenrick said today: ‘Martyn Blake has been found not guilty. He has been treated very badly. He shouldn’t have been dragged through the courts like this. Just imagine what he has been through over recent months. This has been an appalling experience for him and we should be supporting him right now’.
In an extraordinary case which has profound implications for national security, hundreds of firearms officers around the country downed their weapons in protest when the officer was charged as colleagues argued that he was just trying to save them.
Last night the Met Commissioner praised his officer’s bravery, while and Mr Jenrick described Mr Blake as a ‘hero’ saying his prosecution had ‘endangered the public’.
The fatal shooting on September 5, 2022, happened after armed police started tailing the vehicle Mr Kaba was driving because the Audi Q8 had been linked to a shooting the night before in Brixton, south London.
When police boxed in the vehicle in a residential street in Streatham, Mr Kaba used the car as a ‘battering ram’ reversing into a police car before accelerating into parked cars in a desperate bid to escape. Apparently ready to run over anyone standing in his way, Mr Kaba revved back and forth in the high-powered Audi almost dragging the ten officers surrounding him under the wheels.
Mr Blake finally ended the rampage by firing a single fatal shot through the windscreen killing the driver.
The Met Commissioner said last night: ‘We have been clear that the system holding police to account is broken.
‘The more we crush the spirit of good officers, the less they can fight crime. That risks London becoming less safe.’
Former home secretary Dame Priti Patel, said: ‘This…case has had a huge reputational impact on his career and on the force at large.
‘There are important questions for the CPS to answer over the evidence base they had and their reasons for pursuing it.’
During the three week trial, a succession of officers claimed they would have shot Mr Kaba if Mr Blake had not acted.
Separately, Mr Kaba’s parents Prosper Kaba and Helen Lumuanganu are set to launch a civil claim which may include considering the grounds for appeal.
Members of Mr Kaba’s family rocked back and forth as the verdict was delivered. They said: ‘The not guilty verdict leaves us with the deep pain of injustice.’
The 16 minutes of mayhem that left Sergeant Martyn Blake in the dock accused of murder
Emotional demonstrators attend the protests after the trial verdict where Blake was cleared of murder today
Protesters gather after the trial verdict where Blake was cleared of Mr Kaba’s murder
A banner was held that said ‘We Keep Each Other Safe’, as well as placards saying ‘Justice for Chris Kaba’, and chants of ‘Say his name – Chris Kaba’ and ‘No justice – no peace’ were heard outside the court
It comes after more than 200 protesters gathered outside the Old Bailey with Mr Kaba’s family on Monday evening.
A banner was held that said ‘We Keep Each Other Safe’, as well as placards saying ‘Justice for Chris Kaba’, and chants of ‘Say his name – Chris Kaba’ and ‘No justice – no peace’ were heard outside the court.
Mr Kaba’s family said the verdict was a failure ‘for all those affected by police violence’, adding that ‘no family should endure the unimaginable grief we have faced’.
In a statement issued by campaign group Inquest, Mr Kaba’s family said they would ‘continue fighting for Chris, for justice, and for real change’
Kayza Rose, Sheeda Queen (cousin) and Temi Mawale speak to the media after the trial verdict
People demonstrate outside the Old Bailey in central London after a police marksman who fatally shot Chris Kaba has been cleared of his murder
The Crown Prosecution Service and the watchdog that investigated the shooting sought to defend the decision to bring criminal charges against Mr Blake, saying the decision was made after an in-depth consideration of the evidence and that it was right to put the case before a jury.
Frank Ferguson, of the CPS, said: ‘This has been a complex case and the decision to prosecute was made after in-depth consideration of the available evidence.
‘We recognise firearms officers operate under enormous pressure, but it is our responsibility to put cases before a jury that meet our test for prosecution.’
Home Secretary Yvette Cooper said she would work with forces ‘to strengthen confidence for the future’, while the Association of Police and Crime Commissioners said it would ‘reflect on the wider implications’ of the case.
Mayor of London Sadiq Khan claimed: ‘There’s clearly still a wider lack of trust in the police, particularly within the Black community, that needs to be addressed’
Protesters gather outside the Old Bailey to demonstrate their opposition to the verdict of not guilty in the case of the fatal shooting of Chris Kaba by Metropolitan Police Firearms Officer Martyn Blake
