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Jermaine Baker shooting: Firearms officer will not be charged | Jermaine Baker shooting: Firearms officer will not be charged |
(35 minutes later) | |
A Met Police firearms officer will face no charges over the shooting of a man who was killed in a botched attempt to free a prisoner, prosecutors said. | A Met Police firearms officer will face no charges over the shooting of a man who was killed in a botched attempt to free a prisoner, prosecutors said. |
It comes after Jermaine Baker, 28, was killed by armed officers in London, in December 2015. | It comes after Jermaine Baker, 28, was killed by armed officers in London, in December 2015. |
Mr Baker, who was with two men in a car near Wood Green Crown Court, had intended to help a man being held on remand escape from a prison van. | Mr Baker, who was with two men in a car near Wood Green Crown Court, had intended to help a man being held on remand escape from a prison van. |
Firearms officers were deployed to disrupt the plan. | Firearms officers were deployed to disrupt the plan. |
"The officers reasonably believed that the men in the car were dangerous individuals, who were armed and prepared to use their weapons to achieve their criminal purpose," a Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) spokesman said. | "The officers reasonably believed that the men in the car were dangerous individuals, who were armed and prepared to use their weapons to achieve their criminal purpose," a Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) spokesman said. |
"Having taken account of all the evidence provided by the IPCC [Independent Police Complaints Commission], the CPS has concluded that there is not a realistic prospect of conviction." | |
"The prosecution could not prove to the required standard that [the officer] was being untruthful about his belief that Mr Baker was armed and reaching for a weapon to fire on the officers." | "The prosecution could not prove to the required standard that [the officer] was being untruthful about his belief that Mr Baker was armed and reaching for a weapon to fire on the officers." |
Mr Baker 'not armed' | Mr Baker 'not armed' |
The CPS spokesman said the officer had fired one shot which hit and killed Mr Baker, from Tottenham. | |
"Following a thorough search it was found that Mr Baker was not armed," he continued. | |
"An imitation firearm was, however, recovered from a holdall in the rear foot well behind the driver's seat of the car." | "An imitation firearm was, however, recovered from a holdall in the rear foot well behind the driver's seat of the car." |
The IPCC said it was aware of the CPS decision and was waiting from a response from the Met Police. | |
At the time, Mr Baker and his accomplices were attempted to spring from a prison van Izzet Eren, who was being held on remand at HMP Wormwood Scrubs accused of gun offences, as he was en-route to a hearing at the court. | |
During the subsequent trial of one of Mr Baker's accomplices, Eren Hasyer, jurors at Woolwich Crown Court were told the prisoner hatched the escape plot from his cell using a smuggled mobile phone. | |
Det Ch Supt Tom Manson, of the Met Police, said: "This was a bold, well planned and carefully thought out conspiracy that bears all the hallmarks of a professional crime." | |
Two other men, Nathan Mason and Gokay Sogucakli, had admitted being part of the escape plot before Hasyer's trial began. | |
Hasyer was found guilty in May last year, of aiding the attempt to free Eren from the prison van. |