A Metropolitan Police officer, identified as Martyn Blake, has pleaded not guilty to killing 24-year-old Chris Kaba during a Met operation in Streatham, south London, in September 2022. Blake, a firearms officer known by the codename NX121 after receiving threats, had previously been granted anonymity, but this was lifted by Judge Mark Lucraft after media organisations including the BBC successfully challenged the decision on the grounds that it was necessary to hold trials in public where possible. The trial is set to begin in October. Blake has been granted bail.
Blake’s anonymity order was lifted as significant information had emerged about a threat to his safety in the aftermath of the shooting. Mr Justice Lucraft examined “raw underlying intelligence” about the threat, to enable him to make the decision about whether the officer should be allowed to remain anonymous. As the trial approaches, attempts might be made to find out more about Blake, but Mr Justice Lucraft concluded that naming Blake or giving his date of birth did not give rise to a real and immediate risk to the officer’s life. However, restrictions on publishing pictures of the officer or his address will remain in place.
After Blake was charged, some Metropolitan Police firearms officers stepped back from their duties in protest. At one stage, it was reported that up to 300 armed officers had turned in their firearms permits allowing them to carry weapons, out of a total of around 2,500 armed officers in the Met. Rick Prior, the Metropolitan Police Federation secretary, was “hugely shocked, saddened, and concerned” about Blake’s identification. He emphasized that police officers need to have full confidence that they have the protection required to perform this challenging and dangerous job that is expected of them.
Mr Kaba was shot through the windscreen while he was driving in Streatham on the night of 5 September 2022 when the Met stopped him using two cars. In the following moments, he was shot in the head and passed away in the early hours of the next day. The case has raised concerns about the use of lethal force in the United Kingdom, and the police were criticized for not following the country’s guidelines on the use of lethal force
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