The Metropolitan Police has announced the suspension of the firearms officer who fatally shot Chris Kaba last Monday while in his car.
The UK watchdog opened a homicide investigation into the murder of Kaba a few days after the shooting occurred; however, it was not until today that they released a statement saying they have officially suspended the officer in question.
Kaba, was 24 years old, with a child on the way, when police cornered his car and fired a single shot at him through the windscreen. That came after an Automatic Number Plate Recognition camera detected that the Audi he was driving was connected to a firearms incident a few days prior.
However, later, it was concluded that there was no gun found at the scene, meaning Kaba was unarmed, and that the car also was not registered in his name.
Kaba’s injuries were so severe from the gunshot wound that he died in hospital early the following morning.
Amanda Pearson, the Metropolitan Police assistant, said in a statement that the decision to suspend the culpable officer had been reached “following careful consideseveral number of factors, including the significant impact on public confidence” and “the IOPC announcing a homicide investigation.”
This announcement comes after thousands of protestors marched through central London on Saturday afternoon to demand justice for Kaba.
Holding signs saying “Black Lives Matter '', “Justice for Chris Kaba,” and “Abolish the Met,”- around 5,000 people gathered in Parliament Square before marching up to Whitehall and eventually onto New Scotland Yard.
Kaba’s family were amongst the protestors and had previously called for an investigation to take place into the shooting and for the firearms officer who took the fatal shot to be suspended.
Labour MP for Hackney North, Diane Abbott, and prominent singer Stormzy, known in the past for speaking up about his political views, also attended the demonstration.
Stormzy gave a speech to the crowd and urged them to have stamina. He continued by explaining that they often end up allowing people to get away with committing these acts against color just because they eventually get tired of trying to make a difference after tweeting about the issue for a certain period.
In her statement for the Met, Pearson clarified that the suspension of the firearms officer who shot Kaba does not have any bearing on the outcome of the homicide investigation.
Written by: Willow Shah-Neville
Editor: Melissa Pretorius
Share This Post On
0 comments
Leave a comment
You need to login to leave a comment. Log-in
