Police officer shot black man dead as he tried to ram roadblock, court told

A police officer shot and killed a young black man who tried to ram through a roadblock in a car linked to a firearms incident, a court has heard.

Chris Kaba died after he was struck by a single bullet fired by Martyn Blake, a Metropolitan Police firearms officer, on the evening of Sept 5, 2022.

The 24-year-old had been driving an Audi Q8 through the streets of south London when he was stopped by armed police officers who were alerted to the fact the same vehicle had been involved in a shooting in Brixton the night before.

When Mr Kaba used the car in a “concerted attempt” to ram the police vehicles out of the way and escape, Mr Blake opened fire, killing him.

The officer later explained he had done so in the belief that his life and those of his colleagues were in danger.

But following an independent investigation into the circumstances of the shooting, the decision was made to charge Mr Blake, 40, with murder.

At the opening of the trial at the Old Bailey, Tom Little KC, prosecuting, told jurors: “This case undoubtedly involves a decision by this defendant to shoot Chris Kaba with an intention to kill.

“It was undoubtedly a decision taken to use lethal force with a firearm by a firearms officer in the Metropolitan Police.”

He went on: “We say the unassailable evidence of what actually took place that night reveals that it was not reasonably justified or justifiable.

“The body-worn footage and footage from cameras on police vehicles reveals, we say, that it was not necessary to shoot.

“The immediate risk to both the defendant and his fellow officers at the scene did not, we say, justify… firing the bullet into vehicle Chris Kaba was driving.

“That is why we say that this is a case of murder rather than the use of lawful self-defence or lawful defence of another.”

‘Only he knows’

Mr Little explained that the police officer did not know the identity of the man in the car and said what Mr Blake was thinking when he opened fire “only he knows”.

But Mr Little suggested the officer may have acted as he did because he was “angry, frustrated and annoyed” at Mr Kaba’s refusal to obey police instructions.

Mr Kaba’s mother became visibly upset and was comforted by a relative as the case was opened.

The prosecutor said while the incident may have been “challenging” for the police officers, it had not been nearly as life-threatening as suggested, because Mr Kaba’s car was stationary when Mr Blake opened fire.

The court was told that the night before Mr Kaba was killed, members of the public had contacted the police to report hearing gunshots in Brixton and seeing a man with a shotgun.

Mr Little explained: “The reports also included the detail that three men, wearing dark hoodies, had changed their clothing and got into two vehicles and had driven away. One vehicle was black and the other was white.

“A registration number given for one of the vehicles was YF19 NMM. That is the registration number of the Audi vehicle that Chris Kaba was driving on the night you are considering.”

Mr Blake denies one count of murder and the trial, which is expected to last three weeks, continues.

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