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| Man shot by police in Coventry killed lawfully, jury concludes | |
| (32 minutes later) | |
| Sean Fitzgerald, 31, was killed on 4 January 2019 in Burnaby Road, Coventry | Sean Fitzgerald, 31, was killed on 4 January 2019 in Burnaby Road, Coventry |
| A man shot dead by police during a drugs raid was killed lawfully, a jury has concluded. | A man shot dead by police during a drugs raid was killed lawfully, a jury has concluded. |
| Sean Fitzgerald, 31, was killed on 4 January 2019 in Burnaby Road, Coventry, where West Midlands Police officers were investigating the activities of a suspected organised crime gang. | Sean Fitzgerald, 31, was killed on 4 January 2019 in Burnaby Road, Coventry, where West Midlands Police officers were investigating the activities of a suspected organised crime gang. |
| The officer who fired the fatal shot - Officer K - told Coventry Coroner's Court he had been standing in the property's back garden when he saw a curtain move and a black object being held. | The officer who fired the fatal shot - Officer K - told Coventry Coroner's Court he had been standing in the property's back garden when he saw a curtain move and a black object being held. |
| Mr Fitzgerald, who was unarmed, died from a single gunshot wound to the chest after exiting the property at about 18:20 GMT. | Mr Fitzgerald, who was unarmed, died from a single gunshot wound to the chest after exiting the property at about 18:20 GMT. |
| Six years after his death, an inquest jury was asked to consider two conclusions of lawful or unlawful killing by Officer K. | Six years after his death, an inquest jury was asked to consider two conclusions of lawful or unlawful killing by Officer K. |
| The officer, as well as a number of others, have had their anonymity protected during proceedings. | |
| The jury identified three failures in the police operation, including the level of intelligence and inadequate prior surveillance of premises. | |
| Liam Fitzgerald, Sean's brother, held his head in his hands as the jury announced its conclusion. | |
| 'Thought I was going to be shot' | |
| The events that led to the fatal shooting began in 2017, when Warwickshire Police started investigating an organised crime gang it believed was dealing Class A drugs in the Nuneaton, Bedworth and Coventry areas. | |
| As the gang's activities escalated, the investigation was handed over to the West Midlands' Regional Organised Crime Unit (ROCU). | |
| ROCU received intelligence claiming lead gang members were expected to be at 56 Burnaby Road for a regular meeting on the day of the shooting. | |
| Within hours, a search warrant and firearms assistance was agreed for a raid on the house. | |
| The jury was told there was limited information about the layout of the house, but that members of the gang had access to weapons. | |
| During the inquest, Officer K described to jurors how he had been in the property's garden when he saw a man holding what he thought was a gun. | |
| "I thought he was about to shoot us," Officer K said. "I fired one shot at the male to stop his actions. | |
| "It seemed to take an eternity, I was aware it was quick but at the time it seemed to slow down. I thought I was going to be shot." | |
| It was found that the object in Mr Fitzgerald's hand was a mobile phone. | |
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