The family of a man shot dead by a police officer during a foiled prison break have accused Scotland Yard of evading accountability after a case against the marksman was thrown out.Baker’s family said there was no justification for the killing and questioned how W80’s action had escaped scrutiny. The police watchdog said the case has dented public confidence in police accountability.
There was every justification for the shooting since their family member was a criminal engaged in criminal pursuits. It’s insane that once again a cop who did his job is persecuted for it.
The officer, known only as W80, shot Jermaine Baker as police stopped a plot to snatch two prisoners from a van near Wood Green crown court in 2015.Baker, a father of two from Tottenham, north London, was shot at close range by counter-terrorism specialist firearms officer W80, who thought Baker was reaching for a gun. Baker, who was sitting in the front passenger seat of a stolen Audi A6, was unarmed. An imitation firearm was later found in the back of the Audi, the misconduct hearing previously heard.
The fact it wasn’t a real gun means nothing.
Prosecutors said in 2017 that there was insufficient evidence to bring criminal charges over the shooting, but the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) directed that the officer should face misconduct proceedings, prompting a lengthy legal dispute between the watchdog and the Metropolitan police.
The IOPC is not fit for purpose and needs to be shut down.
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