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Sgt Matiu Ratana: Met officer murder accused sad he died, jury hears | Sgt Matiu Ratana: Met officer murder accused sad he died, jury hears |
(about 3 hours later) | |
Sgt Matiu Ratana was head coach at East Grinstead Rugby Club | Sgt Matiu Ratana was head coach at East Grinstead Rugby Club |
A man accused of murdering Metropolitan Police custody sergeant Matiu Ratana has told a jury he felt "sad" the officer died. | |
Louis De Zoysa agreed CCTV footage showed him firing a gun at 54-year-old Sgt Ratana, who was shot at Croydon custody centre on 25 September 2020. | |
Asked what murder meant, 25-year-old Mr De Zoysa said: "Kill." | Asked what murder meant, 25-year-old Mr De Zoysa said: "Kill." |
He told the court he had not meant to kill Sgt Ratana nor to cause him really serious harm. | |
As he began giving evidence at Northampton Crown Court, Mr De Zoysa sat in a wheelchair in the well of the courtroom with a small whiteboard and marker on the desk in front of him. | As he began giving evidence at Northampton Crown Court, Mr De Zoysa sat in a wheelchair in the well of the courtroom with a small whiteboard and marker on the desk in front of him. |
In a modified oath, he promised to tell the truth and confirmed his name and date of birth using the whiteboard. | In a modified oath, he promised to tell the truth and confirmed his name and date of birth using the whiteboard. |
Murder jury shown CCTV of policeman being shot | Murder jury shown CCTV of policeman being shot |
Shot Met officer jury shown where gun may have been | Shot Met officer jury shown where gun may have been |
The prosecution alleged Mr De Zoysa, from Banstead in Surrey, "pulled the trigger on purpose four times" while he was handcuffed in a holding room. | |
The court heard the first and second shots hit Sgt Ratana, the third hit the wall during a struggle with officers and a fourth hit the defendant. | |
Father 'beat' him | |
Mr De Zoysa told the court he is autistic and would regularly get stressed out, leading him to punch chairs and walls. | |
Asked about his family, Mr De Zoysa alleged his father used to "beat" him over "trivial matters". | |
He later wrote the word "coke" on his whiteboard before adding: "He is a criminal. He used to be a drug dealer." | |
The defendant drew a stickman wearing a cast on one leg before confirming his father hit and broke his leg. | |
Mr De Zoysa appeared in court on 9 June in a wheelchair with his arm in a sling | |
Mr De Zoysa told the court in a separate incident he hit his father on the head using a metal rod out of "panic" which he said was "possibly" caused by his autism. | |
The court heard in June 2019 he was arrested for "fighting" his father because his dad was upsetting him and talking "too loud". | |
'Set fire to carpet' | |
He confirmed to jurors he had previously broken the stairs in his family home and set a carpet on fire because he was "upset", and also said he smoked cannabis due to "stress" as it helped him feel "mellow". | |
The court heard the defendant received three A grades at A-Level for Chemistry, Physics and Maths, and attended University College London but did not finish his degree, going on to work in coding at HMRC. | |
The jury was told during the early hours of 25 September 2020, Mr De Zoysa was arrested on London Road in Norbury, south London, after a stop and search by officers found cannabis and seven rounds of ammunition on him. | |
The court heard officers did not know he had a gun until it was used to shoot Sgt Ratana. | |
The trial continues. | The trial continues. |
Follow BBC London on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. Send your story ideas to hellobbclondon@bbc.co.uk | Follow BBC London on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. Send your story ideas to hellobbclondon@bbc.co.uk |
Related Topics | Related Topics |
Banstead | Banstead |
Croydon | Croydon |
Metropolitan Police Service | Metropolitan Police Service |
London | London |
Norbury | Norbury |