Police officer cleared of murdering Chris Kaba

A police officer has been cleared of murdering a man he shot in the head in south London two years ago.

Martyn Blake, 40, shot Chris Kaba, who was unarmed, during a police vehicle stop in Streatham in September 2022.

Speaking after the verdict at the Old Bailey on Monday, Mr Kaba's family said it was "painful proof that our lives are not valued by the system".

Metropolitan Police Commissioner Sir Mark Rowley said: "No police officer is above the law, but we have been clear the system holding police to account is broken."

Mr Blake, who denied intending to kill the 24-year-old, took a deep breath as the jury's decision was read out, but otherwise did not react to the not guilty verdict.

The Met said the officer, who was suspended throughout the process, would be immediately reinstated.

Mr Kaba, who was due to become a father, had been followed by police because the car he was driving had been linked to a previous shooting in Brixton.

After being boxed in by police cars during the stop, he drove backwards and forwards trying to ram his way free, which Mr Blake said made him believe one of his colleagues would be killed, and he opened fire to stop the car, the jury heard.

Mr Kaba died from a single gunshot wound to the forehead.

One of Mr Blake's fellow firearms officers told the court he would have taken a shot if Mr Blake had not, and another said he was "fractions of a second" away from doing the same.

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The Metropolitan Police Commissioner said Mr Blake had paid "a huge personal and professional sacrifice" in the two years since the shooting.

Sir Mark said the officer had made "a split-second decision on what he believed was necessary to protect his colleagues and to protect London".

He criticised the systems used to hold police officers who take lethal shots to account.

"I worry about the lack of support officers face for doing their best, but most of all, I worry for the public," he said.

"The more we crush the spirit of good officers, the less they can fight crime - that risks London becoming less safe."

In protest after Mr Blake was charged with murder, more than 100 Met firearms officers turned in their permits that allowed them to carry weapons.

Such were the concerns that officers would again hand in their weapons if he was convicted, the army was put on standby to provide an armed response in the capital if required, the BBC understands.

A Home Office source has told the BBC it was important contingencies were put in place to keep the public safe.

Mr Kaba's family said they were devastated by the verdict, and that the acquittal of Mr Blake "wasn't just a failure for our family, but for all those affected by police violence".

A gathering of about 150 people held a vigil outside the Old Bailey on Monday evening, some holding signs with slogans including "this is not justice" and "police are perpetrators".

Earlier, Sheeda Queen, a cousin of Mr Kaba, and a member of the Justice for Chris campaign group, described "a deep pain of injustice, adding to the unbearable sorrow".

Another campaigner, Kayza Rose, said the outcome "reinforces the harsh reality that police can kill without consequence".

She added: "No-one can be safe while the police can kill with impunity.

"This verdict is not the end. It only strengthens our resolve.

"Now is the time to join and fight for a future where justice and accountability are the norm, and no-one is above the law."

A third member of the campaign group, Temi Mwale, said: "The fight for accountability, for justice, and for racial equality has spanned decades.

"We honour all those who have contributed to that fight. Those that came before us, whose shoulders we stand on today.

"We are reminded that there is nothing for us in this criminal, legal system.

"There was very little faith we could invest in this court because it has never, ever produced a successful murder conviction of any on-duty police officer.

"The only thing that the police deliver to our communities is pain."

Ms Mwale added: "We haven't stood for it before and we will continue to fight until our last breath, until we are in our graves - and from the afterlife as ancestors, we will strengthen the next generation so that they can fight.

"We believe that our grandchildren will have to continue fighting.

"Who wants to live in a society where the police can shoot unarmed people in the forehead and be faced with no consequences?

"Martyn Blake didn't spend but a second in a handcuff, not a second in a jail cell.

"Our lives will never matter to this system, but it's fine.

"We matter to each other. We matter to ourselves and we will fight for our rights. No justice. No peace."

The police watchdog, the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC), will now consider whether Mr Blake should face a disciplinary hearing.

Frank Ferguson, from the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS), said the decision to prosecute was made "after an in-depth consideration of all the available evidence".

He said: "We recognise that firearms officers operate under enormous pressure, but it is our responsibility to put cases before a jury that meet our test for prosecution, and we are satisfied that test was met in this case."

Home Secretary Yvette Cooper said: “Criminal prosecutions brought against police officers for actions taken in the course of their duties are extremely rare.

"Each day, police officers across the country work hard with bravery and integrity to keep the public safe."

Additional reporting by Mark Easton.

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