The decision by up to 300 Metropolitan police firearms officers to withdraw from armed duties is a serious and worrying development – the gravest that Sir Mark Rowley has had to face since he took over as Commissioner 12 months ago.
It follows last week’s announcement by the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) to charge a Met firearms officer with murder over the fatal shooting of Chris Kaba in south London in September 2022. The 24-year-old, who was black, was shot through the windscreen of a car which police had followed and tried to box in. Police had believed the car was linked to a firearms incident the previous day. No gun was subsequently found.
The Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) launched a ‘homicide’ investigation, which took six months to complete. The CPS then took six months to make a charging decision. The officer, who has been suspended from duty for more than a year, is due to face trial next autumn. Whatever
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