In south London, police firearms officer Martyn Blake was cleared of murder after fatally shooting Chris Kaba during an armed vehicle stop in Streatham on 5 September 2022. The judge has now lifted reporting restrictions on Mr. Kaba’s background. Kaba was named as the gunman in a nightclub shooting in Hackney, east London, on 30 August 2022, for which three other men have already been convicted over their involvement and are in prison. Kaba was a rapper who performed under the names Madix or Mad Itch, and was part of the 67 gang, a UK drill group and infamous gang.
Reporting restrictions during Mr Blake’s trial prevented the media from publishing details of Mr. Kaba’s other criminal involvement, including previous convictions of affray and having an imitation firearm dating back to his early teen years. The jury did not learn about Mr. Kaba’s criminal history, however Kaba was not carrying a firearm during his arrest. Police officers did not know who was driving the Audi that night, but they did know it had been used as a getaway car in another shooting in Brixton, South London, the previous night. An automatic number plate recognition (ANPR) marker had been placed on the car, alerting the police to it.
Blake denied intending to kill Kaba and said he believed one of his colleagues could be killed by Kaba’s car as he tried to get away from the police stop, which spurred him to open fire. He cited Kaba’s dangerous movements of driving backward and forward as he tried to escape from being boxed in by police cars. Mr. Kaba died from a single gunshot wound to the forehead. Mr. Kaba’s family expressed their pain and described the acquittal as “painful proof that our lives are not valued by the system.” Campaigners have held a vigil outside the Old Bailey to protest the verdict
Read the full article from The BBC here: Read More
