A police marksman acquitted of murdering a violent gangster now faces a ‘nonsensical’ disciplinary hearing to the fury of MPs and officers.
Sergeant Martyn Blake was cleared of any wrongdoing at an Old Bailey trial after shooting dead Chris Kaba to stop the fleeing motorist running over colleagues.
But now the 40-year-old officer could face the sack after the police watchdog determined that he should face a gross misconduct disciplinary hearing despite the jury’s verdict.
In an extraordinary case which has profound implications for national security, hundreds of firearms officers around the country downed their weapons in protest when Sergeant Blake was charged with murder, as colleagues argued that he was just trying to save them from the 24-year-old motorist.
The decision by the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) to pursue a disciplinary hearing has incensed MPs and firearms officers, who say they face years of investigation if they pull the trigger to protect a life.
Shadow Home Secretary Chris Philp said: ‘I’m deeply disappointed by this IOPC decision. Sergeant Martyn Blake has already been unanimously acquitted of murder by a jury having carefully considered all the facts and evidence.
‘He made a difficult decision in the heat of a moment, when confronted by a car associated with firearms offences ramming into police officers.
‘Chris Kaba was a violent gang member. We need to support police officers who do difficult things to protect the public, provided they act in accordance with the law, as a jury found this officer did.
Martyn Blake who shot Chris Kaba (pictured) will now face a gross misconduct hearing
Footage of the moment armed officers ran towards Mr Kaba’s car as he tried to escape from a roadblock
‘This has hung over Sergeant Blake for too long. I think the IOPC has got this wrong.’
Matt Cane, General Secretary of the Metropolitan Police Federation, said: ‘This is frankly a nonsensical ruling by the IOPC that will shock police officers across London and indeed the country.
‘Police officers should not have their livelihoods or liberty put at risk for performing what unequivocally, as has been found in a court of law, is their lawful and appropriate function.
‘And yet putting this brave officer on trial for murder – as astonishing as that was – was not enough for the IOPC. Being cleared unanimously by a jury who heard all the evidence was not enough for the IOPC. They have now decided to put him and his family through more torment.
‘This is not accountability. This is not in the public interest. This is not right or fair or just.
‘We will be vigorously defending the actions of Sgt Blake at any conduct proceedings.
Chris Kaba (pictured on an earlier occasion ) was shot by Sergeant Martyn Blake through the windscreen
‘And as a Federation, we continue to work with the Metropolitan Police Service to ensure that colleagues who make the decision to carry firearms remain fully supported in their difficult and demanding jobs.’
Ministers are reviewing the way firearms officers are held to account after the case provoked outrage from policing leaders.
Sergeant Blake already faces a lifetime under threat after gangsters put a £10,000 bounty on his head, offering a reward to anyone prepared to provide his whereabouts so they could exact a bloody revenge.
The fatal shooting on September 5, 2022 happened after armed police started tailing the vehicle that Kaba was driving because the Audi Q8 had been used as a getaway car in a gang-related shooting the night before in Brixton, South London.
When police boxed in the vehicle in a residential street in Streatham, Kaba used the car as a ‘battering ram’ revving back and forth in the high-powered Audi almost dragging the ten officers surrounding him under the wheels before Mr Blake shot him through the windscreen.
Although Mr Blake did not know the identity of the driver at the time, he later discovered that Kaba was a leading member of the 67 gang, which police consider one of the most dangerous gangs in South London.
The 24-year-old was high on cocaine and still had gun residue on his sleeve and a balaclava in his car, providing ‘strong evidence’ that he had carried out the Brixton shooting the night before, the Old Bailey heard.
Just six days before his death, Kaba brazenly shot a rival in the middle of a crowded nightclub during a bloody feud for control of a profitable county lines drug network.
Had he not been killed, Kaba would have stood trial at the Old Bailey for the attempted murder.
In October, jurors took just three hours to acquit Mr Blake, who was later praised and promoted by the Met Commissioner.
Sir Mark Rowley warned charging firearms officers in such situations was ‘crushing the spirit of good officers’ and was making London less safe.
Today the IOPC said there was ‘sufficient evidence’ to indicate Sergeant Blake ‘may have breached the police professional standards regarding his use of force’
The threshold for misconduct cases is a lower test than that for criminal proceedings.
IOPC Director Amanda Rowe said: ‘The legal test for deciding whether there is a case to answer is low – is there sufficient evidence upon which, on the balance of probabilities, a disciplinary panel could make a finding of misconduct. This has been met and therefore we need to follow the legal process.’
Scotland Yard will now consider whether to launch a legal challenge against the decision.
Met Assistant Commissioner Laurence Taylor referred to Mr Blake as NX121, the code name he was given in court before a judge ruled he could be named.
He said: ‘We made strong representations that he should not face any further action due to the extensive evidence tried and tested at court and the not guilty verdict returned by the jury.
‘NX121 made a split-second decision on what he believed was necessary to protect his colleagues and London and a jury unanimously decided that was an honestly-held belief and the force used was reasonable.
‘However, the IOPC has now determined that NX121 has a case to answer for his use of force and has directed us to hold a gross misconduct hearing.
‘We know another lengthy process will fall heavily on the shoulders of NX121 and more widely our firearms officers, who continue to bravely and tirelessly police the streets of London every day to protect the public.’
The hearing will be chaired by a senior officer from another police force.
In a statement issued through the charity Inquest, Mr Kaba’s family welcomed the IOPC’s decision.
‘We hope this leads to him being removed from the Met Police,’ they said.
‘What Martyn Blake did was deeply wrong. We are still so devastated to have lost Chris – this should never have happened.
‘The fact that the Met promoted Martyn Blake after the verdict only deepened our pain and showed a complete disregard for our loss.
‘Martyn Blake should not be allowed to remain a police officer. He should lose his job.’
Deborah Coles, director of Inquest, called it ‘reprehensible’ that the Met had to be directed to hold a disciplinary hearing.
Downing Street said Sir Keir Starmer had confidence in the police watchdog but the Government also believed the verdict of the Old Bailey jury should be respected.
The Prime Minister’s official spokesman said: ‘It’s a decision for the IOPC, that is obviously independent of government.
‘But the Home Secretary and the Prime Minister are clear that the verdict of the jury at a criminal trial, who found the officer not guilty, must be respected.
‘More generally, we are committed to ensuring that the police have got the confidence they need to do their incredibly difficult and dangerous jobs.’
