Chris Kaba: Man shot dead by cop was accused of shooting rival just weeks earlier

A man shot dead by a police officer was a “core member” of a notorious gang who was accused of shooting a rival in the legs in a Hackney nightclub just weeks before he died.

Sergeant Martyn Blake, 40, shot Chris Kaba through the windscreen of an Audi Q8 in Kirkstall Gardens, Streatham on September 5, 2022. Mr Kaba, a 24-year-old father-to-be, was unarmed when he was shot in the head.

Yesterday, Sgt Blake was acquitted of Kaba’s murder, and the verdict has reignited a fierce debate over how the Government deals with fatal shootings by police.

However, following the acquittal of Sgt Blake, the judge has now lifted reporting restrictions, which means Kaba’s previous convictions can be reported for the first time.

The 24-year-old was described as a “core member” of a notorious South London gang. A man, believed to be Kaba, was pictured on CCTV shooting another man in a nightclub in Hackney six days before he died in September 2022.

Kaba would have stood trial for attempted murder had he survived.

He had a string of previous convictions for violence and possession of weapons, and the Audi Q8 he was driving when he was killed was linked to three previous firearms incidents in five months.

On the night of Kaba’s death, unmarked police cars forced the Audi he was driving to stop. Officers did not know that Kaba was driving the car, only that the vehicle had been linked to a shooting the night before.

The case is the first police shooting in the country caught on the body-worn cameras of police officers which led to a murder trial, providing footage relied on by the prosecution.

The prosecution argued that the firearms officer decided to shoot “precipitously” while the Audi was stationary, with no risk to anyone.

Testifying in his own defence, Mr Blake said he became “filled with dread” that the suspect would use the vehicle as a weapon and kill his colleagues.

Following the verdict yesterday, Kaba’s family said in a statement: “We are devastated. No family should endure the unimaginable grief we have faced.

“The not guilty verdict leaves us with the deep pain of injustice, adding to the unbearable sorrow we have felt since Chris was killed.”

Sergeant Blake was charged with Kaba’s murder by the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) on September 20, 2023.

In response, more than 100 firearms officers handed in their weapons permits, while then Home Secretary Suella Braverman and Met Commissioner Sir Mark Rowley condemned the decision to charge the officer.

Following the jury’s verdict yesterday, the Commissioner doubled down in this sentiment. He said: “No police officer is above the law, but we have been clear that the system holding police to account is broken.

“I worry about the lack of support officers face for doing their best, but most of all I worry for the public. The more we crush the spirit of good officers, the less they can fight crime.”

Under the law, firearms officers can use lethal force, but it must be reasonable in the circumstances the officer honestly believed them to be.

Since 2005, four men who were unarmed have been shot dead by the Met in non-terrorist operations. They are Kaba, Jermaine Baker in 2015, Mark Duggan in 2011 and Azelle Rodney in 2005. They were all black.

Sir Mark said: “Any fatal use of force understandably prompts huge concern among communities, particularly in black communities where trust in policing is low.

“There remains much for us to do to strengthen confidence in our service, and we know incidents like this place further strain on already challenged relationships.”

Shooting Kaba was the first time since joining firearms in 2016 that Sgt Blake fired at a suspect.

Sir Rowley said: “Sgt Blake made a split-second decision on what he believed was necessary to protect his colleagues and to protect London.

“Over the past two years Sgt Blake has paid a huge personal and professional sacrifice.”

Sgt Blake was suspended following the shooting in September 2022. His suspension will now be “immediately lifted”, the commissioner said.

IOPC director Amanda Rowe highlighted the impact the trial has had on Kaba’s family, who continue to grieve his death more than two years on, as well as Sgt Blake and the wider policing community.

She said: “The decisions to criminally investigate Sgt Blake, and to refer the case to the CPS, followed careful consideration of a significant amount of evidence.

“Ultimately it is the jury’s decision, having carefully considered all the evidence, to determine guilt or innocence and we respect that decision and thank them for their consideration.”

Since the shooting of Kaba, a sense of collective grief has spread throughout many communities.

Councillor Claire Holland, the leader of Lambeth council, said: “While this closes the criminal investigation into Chris’ killing, the trauma in our communities remains.”

The local authority will be speaking with Kaba’s family and community leaders in the coming days, Cllr Holland said.

She said: “We will also be speaking to the Met and the government to continue the push for change that we need to see to ensure that we have the fair and accountable policing our communities both need and deserve.

“This is a really difficult moment for our borough. The loss of a young person at the start of their adult life, with so much ahead of them, is a tragedy.”

Pictured top: Temi Mawale (left), Kayza Rose (second left) along with friends and family of Chris Kaba demonstrate outside the Old Bailey in central London after a jury acquitted Sgt Blake of murder (Picture: Jordan Pettitt/PA Wire)