With police marksman Martyn Blake ‘likely to be charged with gross misconduct’ for shooting dead Chris Kaba, despite being acquitted of murder

The police officer who shot dead Chris Kaba is likely to be charged with serious misconduct and could be fired if found guilty, despite being acquitted of murder.

MailOnline today revealed that Met firearms officer Martyn Blake is still unable to return to work – even though he was found not guilty – as the threat of a misconduct hearing from the police watchdog hangs over him.

It is now considered likely that Blake will be charged with misconduct, especially in light of an unrelated Supreme Court ruling into the fatal shooting of Jermaine Baker during an attempted prison break in London in 2015.

The 40-year-old marksman walked free from the Old Bailey yesterday after a jury acquitted him of the 2022 incident in just three hours following a nearly three-week trial.

But there is great anger over the reputational damage Blake has suffered and the prospect of his dismissal.

Metropolitan Police marksman Martyn Blake, 40, has been acquitted at the Old Bailey of the murder of Chris Kaba, 24, who was fatally shot in Streatham, south-east London, on September 5, 2022. Sergeant Blake cannot return to work despite the verdict

Footage of the moment armed officers ran towards Mr Kaba’s car, which was surrounded. He tried to drive away

Sergeant Blake, also known as Officer NX121, told the Central Criminal Court he feared for his life when he made the fatal shot after Kaba tried to fight his way out of a police checkpoint in an Audi Q8 that police believed was linked to a gun incident the night before.

It is understood that the Met initially supported the position of bringing disciplinary charges against Blake, but subsequently changed its position in light of Blake’s acquittal.

Blake has been forced to live in hiding in fear for his life and his family after a £10,000 reward was offered to anyone willing to provide information on his whereabouts to kill him in revenge for Mr Kaba’s death.

It has since also emerged that Mr Kaba was one of London’s most feared gangsters with a shocking history of violence.

It is believed the Independent Office of Police Conduct (IOPC) is likely to conduct a gross misconduct hearing, although it will first review the evidence at Blake’s trial in case anything emerges that could change its decision.

While the evidence from the trial is reviewed, the Met will have the opportunity to provide a fresh perspective.

It is considered likely that Blake will face gross misconduct charges in light of the High Court ruling on Jermaine Baker, who was murdered during an attempted prison escape in London in 2015.

The IOPC’s post-trial review process is a standard practice for investigations where an officer is cleared of criminal charges but found to have a case to answer for serious misconduct.

But the revelation that the Met personally supported gross misconduct last year has heightened concerns among firearms officers about the support available.

As police wrapped up the vehicle on a residential street in Streatham, Mr Kaba used the car as a ‘battering ram’, spinning back and forth in the powerful Audi and almost dragging the ten officers surrounding him under the wheels before Sergeant Blake finally put an end took part in the action. disaster by shooting the driver.

This morning the judge at the Old Bailey lifted an order banning the media from publicizing his lord Kaba’s involvement in multiple shootings in the capital.

He was a leading member of Gang 67, considered by police to be the most dangerous gang in South London.

Just six days before his death, Kaba brutally shot a rival in the middle of a busy nightclub during a bloody feud for control of a profitable County Lines drug network.

In an extraordinary case that has profound implications for national security, hundreds of firearms officers across the country downed their weapons in protest when Blake was charged, as colleagues claimed he was only trying to save them.

Last night the Met Commissioner praised his officer’s bravery, while MP Robert Jenrick described Mr Blake as a ‘hero’ and said his prosecution had ‘put the public at risk’.

It comes after more than 200 protesters gathered outside the Old Bailey with Mr Kaba’s family on Monday evening.

A banner reading “We keep each other safe” was held, as well as signs reading “Justice for Chris Kaba”, and chants of “Say his name – Chris Kaba” and “No justice – no peace” were heard outside the court heard. .

Protesters gather after the verdict acquitting Blake of Mr Kaba’s murder

A banner reading “We keep each other safe” was held, as well as signs reading “Justice for Chris Kaba”, and chants of “Say his name – Chris Kaba” and “No justice – no peace” were heard outside the court heard.

Mr Kaba’s family said the verdict was a failure “for all those affected by police brutality”, adding that “no family should have to endure the unimaginable grief we have faced”.

In a statement from campaign group Inquest, Mr Kaba’s family said they would “continue to fight for Chris, for justice and for real change”.

Some protesters carried signs that read, among other things, “shame on being white” and “born in 1999, lynched in 2022,” referring to Kaba’s death.

Sheeda Queen, a cousin of Mr Kaba, broke down in tears and told the crowd that the speed of Martyn Blake’s acquittal was “shameful”.

She said, “My family can’t be here. On the first day, when we started the trial, we watched footage of Chris’ murder. We kept looking at it because it was part of the evidence.

‘My aunt started shaking… crying uncontrollably. My aunt and uncle both developed health problems from this trauma.”