LONDON, 1 October 2005 — Metropolitan Police Commissioner Sir Ian Blair is at the center of a new controversy over the probe into Brazilian electrician’s killing following the release yesterday of letters written by him to the Home Office .
In the letter written a few days after the tragic incident, Sir Ian mentioned the reason why investigation by the Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC) into the fatal shooting was delayed for a few days.
He confirmed that he refused the IPCC access to the crime scene — a tube train standing at a platform at Stockwell Tube, where Jean Charles de Menezes died- —because Scotland Yard’s own in-house counterterrorism investigation being carried out by the Directorate of Professional Standard had to be given priority.
The revelations raise questions about the procedures in place concerning investigations in the event of fatal shootings by armed police.
Following reports about the alleged misinformation police had put out regarding the circumstances that led to the shooting, the de Menezes family representatives accused Scotland Yard and Sir Ian Blair of trying to obfuscate an independent investigation into the killing and of trying to cover up crucial information about the case.
Sir Ian stressed that “this investigation will be rigorous but subordinate to the needs of the counterterrorism operation. In a fast-moving, multi-site terrorist situation, in which suicide bombers are clearly a very strong possibility, a chief officer of police should be able to suspend... (the part of the) Police Reform Act 2002 which requires us to supply all information that the Independent Police Complaints Commission may require.”
The timing of the latest revelations regarding the probe into the de Menezes shooting could not have been worse. Yesterday, de Menezes’s family — his mother Maria de Menezes, father Matozinhos Da Silva, brother Giovani and cousin Alex on a two-week visit to the UK paid for by Scotland Yard — reiterated their anguish and distress after viewing CCTV footage of his last movements and moments.
The family is sworn to secrecy relating to matters discussed at the IPCC because of the ongoing investigation. In a statement read on their behalf by the de Menezes family solicitor Harriet Wistrich, the family stressed that they “have traveled thousands of miles to find out the truth and to get justice for Jean Charles.
“We met with the IPCC and learned about their inquiry and were given information about the progress and the remit. We were provided with some details of what had been established to date. We have agreed that in order not to prejudice any possible criminal proceedings the information disclosed to us should remain confidential.”
However, on the CCTV film viewed, Giovanni de Menezes said that it “showed that Jean did not have suspicious behaviour. For sure they lied to the family.”
Sir Ian, in the letter, denied that he was trying to “exempt” his officers from investigation, but called on prosecuting authorities to “take cognizance of the pressures under which the service operates in terrorist scenarios.
“This is clearly a fast-time decision-making process, in which officers cannot risk the kind of containment and negotiation tactics which would normally be the case. Put simply, the only choice an officer may have may be to shoot to kill in order to prevent the detonation of a device. In due course, I believe we need a document similar to the military rules of engagement but time does not permit its creation at the present time.”
