Category: Police

Source: United Kingdom London Metropolitan Police

Detectives have released a second CCTV image of a man wanted over two assaults in Covent Garden – one of which left a victim in his 70s with serious injuries.

The attacks occurred within moments of each other on 12 October last year. At around 22.33hrs, an off-duty police officer reported being punched in the back of the head close to the Royal Opera House. The officer, attached to the Central East Command Unit, was not injured.

The assailant then approached a second man, aged in his 70s, in nearby King Street. He asked him for directions, before pushing him over.

This victim suffered a bleed on his brain. He temporarily lost consciousness, and required 15 stitches to the back of the head. He is no longer in hospital but continues to suffer the effects of the assault.

The two victims were not known to each other, and the attacks appear to have been random, with no known motive.

The suspect is described as white, around 5ft 9in tall, of medium build, and wearing a black jacket. He was last seen fleeing towards Bedford Street.

Police have made a renewed appeal for information, and have released a new CCTV image of the suspect. This shows the man shortly before the assaults, wearing the exact clothing he had on at the time.

Detective Constable Greg Atkins, from the Central West Command Unit, said: “This incident took place in and around Covent Garden on a busy evening.

“We are making a renewed appeal for anybody with information to come forward. Do you recognise the suspect featured in the CCTV images?

“Multiple people witnessed the assaults and I would ask anyone who can assist in identifying the person responsible to get in contact.”

There has been no arrest and enquiries are ongoing.

Anyone with information that could assist police should call 101, quoting CAD reference 7846/12OCT.

To make an anonymous report, contact the independent charity Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.

Source: United Kingdom London Metropolitan Police

Two women will appear in court charged with criminal damage following an incident in Westminster Abbey on Monday, 13 January.

Alyson Lee – 66 (20.06.58) of Park Grove, Derby and Diane Bligh – 77 (04.02.47) of Langham Place, Frome and have been bailed to appear at Westminster Magistrates’ Court charged with criminal damage. Lee will appear on 11 February and Bligh on 12 February.

The women were arrested after a substance, believed to be a powdered paint, was sprayed on an area inside Westminster Abbey.

Source: United Kingdom London Metropolitan Police

Three men and a woman have been arrested on suspicion of murder following a fatal stabbing in Haringey.

Police responded to reports of a fight at an address on Tiverton Road, N15 at 04:55hrs on Monday, 13 January. Officers, paramedics and London Air Ambulance acted rapidly to treat the victim, a 36-year-old man, for stab wounds, but he sadly died at the scene.

While officers believe they know his identity, enquiries are still ongoing to inform his next of kin.

One 20-year-old man was arrested at the scene, while a 23-year-old woman and two men, aged 20 and 23, were arrested nearby. All remain in custody under suspicion of murder.

There is a heightened police presence in the area and a cordon remains in place while the Specialist Crime team conduct further enquiries.

Detective Chief Superintendent, Caroline Haines from the North Area Command Unit responsible for policing in Haringey, said:

“We are saddened to hear about this morning’s tragic incident and are working to ensure the man’s family are informed and supported by specialist officers as soon as possible.

“Our officers acted swiftly and arrested four people on suspicion of murder who are now in custody. Local residents can expect to see more police in the area while we carry our enquiries and as part of extra patrols.

“We are also urging anyone who may have seen or heard anything related to this incident to contact us, you may have information vital to our investigation.”

Anyone who can help should contact police on 101 quoting 809/13Jan. You can also provide information anonymously to the independent charity Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.

Source: United Kingdom London Metropolitan Police

A man has been charged with terrorism offences after an investigation by the Met’s Counter Terrorism Command.

Paul Martin, 59 (01.06.65) of Croydon, has been charged with encouragement of terrorism, contrary to section 1 of the Terrorism Act 2006, possession of articles for the purposes of terrorism, contrary to section 57 of the Terrorism Act 2000 and possession of a weapon capable of discharging a noxious substance or other thing(stun gun), contrary to section 5(1)(b) of the Firearms Act 1968.

He is due to appear at Westminster Magistrates’ Court on Tuesday, 14 January after being charged via postal requisition.

Martin was arrested in south London on 28 September 2021 and was released under investigation.

Source: United Kingdom London Metropolitan Police

A second man has been charged with assisting Daniel Khalife after he escaped from prison.

Adeel Khan 30 (22.05.94) of Waltham Forest, allegedly assisted Khalife after he escaped from HMP Wandsworth in September 2023.

He has also been charged with possession of a phone in prison contrary to Section 40 D(1) of the Prisons Act 1952.

Khan was charged via postal requisition earlier this month and is due to attend Westminster Magistrates’ Court on Tuesday, 14 January.

Imran Chowdhury 25 (01.01.2000) of Chingford, has also been charged with assisting Khalife after he escaped from HMP Wandsworth.

He appeared at Westminster Magistrates’ Court on 7 January and pleaded not guilty. He was released on bail to appear at Snaresbrook Crown Court on 4 February.

Source: United Kingdom London Metropolitan Police

Police are investigating after three people were injured in potentially related shooting incidents in Hackney, E9.

Police were called at 22:35hrs on Saturday, 11 January to reports of gun shots being fired in two separate incidents in Homerton.

Officers attended the scene along with London’s Air Ambulance and London Ambulance Service.

The investigative team are working at pace to understand the motivation for the offences and identify possible suspects. No arrests have yet been made.

Medics treated a 27-year old man that had sustained gunshot wounds outside Homerton Station, while two other men, aged 28 and 29, were injured in the incident on Gascoyne Road – one receiving a gunshot wound and the other by stabbing.

Their injuries are not said to be life-threatening.

Superintendent Brigid Beehag-Fisher, of Hackney and Tower Hamlets Police, said:

“This incident shows the casual disregard by some for the safety of our communities.

“Our investigation teams are working hard to understand the circumstances behind this incident and identify those responsible.

“Over the coming days there will be increased police presence in the area.

“I would ask anyone with any information about this offence to speak to any of these officers or call police on 101 with reference 6958/11Jan.”

Source: United Kingdom London Metropolitan Police

An officer has been dismissed after a misconduct hearing found he sent and received offensive WhatsApp messages over a number of years.

An independent panel, led by a senior police officer and including another legally qualified member with experience chairing misconduct hearings, found the case against Inspector Charles Ehikioya proven following a misconduct hearing that concluded today (10 January).

The panel heard that between 2017 and 2020, Inspector Ehikioya was in a WhatsApp conversation with a Police Constable who has since been dismissed for a separate matter. During the course of their conversation, Inspector Ehikioya sent a significant number of videos, images, memes and messages of an inappropriate nature. Many were pornographic, included scenes of violence, or were misogynistic.

Inspector Ehikioya received similar messages from the former officer, but at no point did he ever appropriately challenge the behaviour. When he did express concern, it was primarily in the context of being caught.

In a message sent in April 2019, Inspector Ehikioya wrote: “Yo, you need to stop sending or receiving these silly porns, before you get into trouble with work. Because someone you know or don’t know might decide to shop you brov… I have seen and read lately people getting shopped by others. I am sure you have seen what was written in the front page of intranet last week about social media postings that includes during and off duty! There’s even reference to WhatsApp messages shared… Be warned brov.”

The conversation first came to light when, in December 2020, a phone was seized following an allegation by a PCSO about the behaviour of another officer. That officer was not Inspector Ehikioya and there is no suggestion that he was in any way involved in the offending being looked at by that investigation.

Officers downloaded the contents of the phone and found a WhatsApp conversation, the contents of which was concerning enough to prompt further enquiries. While Inspector Ehikioya’s identity was not initially known, a check on the other number sending and receiving messages as part of the conversation revealed that he was the owner of the phone it was linked to.

An investigation was launched by the Met’s Directorate of Professional Standards. They referred the matter to the Independent Office for Police Conduct who decided it was suitable for the Met to investigate locally.

As part of that investigation, a file of evidence was passed to the Crown Prosecution Service who determined that it did not meet the criminal threshold.

At the end of June 2024, Inspector Ehikioya was formally notified of the Met’s intention to hold a misconduct hearing, leading to the proceedings that have taken place over the past week and the outcome above.

Prior to the hearing, he provided details of the argument he would use in his defence including a claim that he had never sent or received the messages in question and that they had been fabricated to frame him.

This prompted a further review of the data that had been extracted from his device, during which specialist officers were able to retrieve thumbnails of some of the images that Inspector Ehikioya claimed he had never sent or received.

During the hearing he was unable to explain how these thumbnails came to be on his device. He was also unable to explain why there would have been messages in the WhatsApp chat containing information he would know such as details about his relatives if he hadn’t been the one sending the messages.

The panel found that Inspector Ehikioya’s argument, that the messages exchanged had been fabricated, was not credible or supported by the evidence. They were described as fanciful, far-fetched and totally implausible.

Delivering the outcome, panel chair Commander Jason Prins said: “Inspector Ehikioya’s actions were intentional and deliberate.

“He would have undoubtedly been aware that the views that he apparently held and expressed were totally contrary to the principles and policies of the Metropolitan Police and ethos of a modern police service.

“He would have been aware that those views, if they became known, would have caused harm and had a significant negative impact on public confidence in the Met, and damaged the reputation thereof.

“The public would be shocked and appalled to find that a serving officer could hold and express such harmful, detrimental, discriminatory and derogatory views and opinions.

“The panel has found that Inspector Ehikioya both sent, received and responded to discriminatory messages. He also failed to challenge or report messages sent to him and therefore tacitly approved discriminatory acts of another. His actions are therefore considered to be of an extremely serious nature for which he is highly culpable.

“The panel find that the appropriate and proportionate section in this case is dismissal without notice.”

An abridged version of the panel’s rationale is attached to this press release.

There has been quite a lot of commentary about this case both within and outside policing, including claims that it was in some way a racially motivated investigation.

We are confident that this was not a case where disproportionality was a factor and we note the panel also found nothing in the evidence to support those arguments. However, we know that its presence in the misconduct system more broadly remains a real concern for officers and staff, particularly those from Black or other minority ethnic heritage backgrounds.

We are delivering significant reforms of the misconduct system specifically intended to address those legitimate concerns and that work continues.

Source: United Kingdom London Metropolitan Police

Two men have been convicted of murder following a Metropolitan Police investigation.

Ben Laing, 23 (22.05.00), of De Brome Road, Feltham and Duarra Abdi, 19 (27.02.04) of Western Avenue, Acton were both convicted of murder, following the fatal stabbing of Tyreece Scott in Hounslow, west London, last year.

Reda Mohamed, 24 (09.01.01) of Linslade Close, Hounslow and Morgan Allen, 29 (09.01.96) of Reeve St, Feltham were also found guilty of perverting the course of justice. Abdi was also found guilty of possessing a bladed article.

In a trial which started on Tuesday, 26 November, at the Central Criminal Court, the jury heard that shortly before 01:00hrs, on Tuesday, 16 January 2024, Tyreece Scott was stabbed to death on Hibernia Road, a quiet residential street in Hounslow.

Despite the efforts of emergency services, 24-year-old Tyreece died on the street outside as a result of a stab wound to the chest.

Laing and Abdi were arrested at Stansted Airport after landing back in the UK on Friday, 19 January and were charged with murder two days later, on Sunday, 21 January.

Detectives scoured CCTV, matching a bag carried by Abdi in the footage of the murder to the bag he was carrying when he was arrested.

Specialist police investigators also recovered phone searches on “Hounslow stabbing” on his phone which proved to act as vital evidence in the trial.

Detective Chief Inspector Ollie Stride, who led the investigation team, said:

“We continue to support Tyreece’s family through this terrible time, but we hope this conviction has given them some confidence in our prolonged efforts to bring them justice.

“Our team has worked incredibly hard to build evidence against the four defendants in this case to prove there could be no doubt as to their guilt.

“The combination of CCTV, data-led intelligence to track phones, automatic number plate recognition evidence helped reveal a compelling case against them.

“London will be a safer place with them taken off the streets”.

The four defendants are due to be sentenced at the Old Bailey on Thursday, 27 February.

Source: United Kingdom London Metropolitan Police

Firearms officers who had no option but to destroy two dogs dangerously out of control have been cleared of any wrongdoing.

An investigation by the Independent Office for Police Conduct found that the officers acted correctly in dealing with the incident in Poplar, east London, in May 2023.

Detective Chief Superintendent James Conway, who leads policing in the area, said: “The IOPC investigation has been extensive, examining every aspect of what happened that day and scrutinising body worn video, mobile phone footage and CCTV of the incident as well as consulting dangerous dog experts.

“The investigation found the officers faced a really challenging situation and made numerous attempts to get the owner of the aggressive animals – after they had attacked a woman and her dog – to surrender them to prevent further injury to anyone.

“The officers demonstrated impressive restraint and bravery in trying to resolve the situation in the face of the owner repeatedly refusing to comply, and only took further action when they were left with no choice after the dogs came free of the man’s grip.

“Parts of the incident were filmed and posted on social media and we know how much distress this matter caused. None of us would wish to see injury to any animal and that includes our officers who only acted to ensure the safety of everyone involved.

“Police officers are highly trained to deal with situations involving dogs that are dangerously out of control and their overriding concern will always be to ensure the safety of the public.”

Police were called just after 17:00hrs on Sunday, 7 May, 2023 to reports of a woman and her dog being attacked by two dogs in Commercial Road, E14. She was knocked to the ground as she attempted to protect herself and her pet. She suffered an injury to her leg, and her dog had a cut nose and some fur bitten from its body.

Armed Met officers and a City of London Police dog handler attended and tracked the owner, who was with two Cana Corsa breed dogs in the street.

They tried to negotiate with the man and prevent him from walking away while the dogs continued to bark.

He refused to hand over the dogs and one of them jumped up at an officer before the owner walked away.

The officers followed him to Limehouse Cut Canal where the man stopped but still refused to surrender his dogs, which were agitated and barking.

At one point, the dogs became loose and moved towards the officers before the owner regained control.

Soon after, one of the dogs became free and lunged towards the police dog handler. A firearms officer then destroyed the dog.

The second dog was detained by the dog handler using a pole capture device and Tasered. It broke free and the same firearms officer pursued, fearing for the safety of his colleagues, before the dog was destroyed.

The dog owner was also Tasered before being arrested. Checks revealed he was disqualified from keeping dogs for 20 years as part of an order handed to him in 2019.

Following public complaints about the actions of the officers, the Met made a referral to the IOPC which launched an independent investigation.

Investigators found no evidence of misconduct or that officers discriminated against the man because he was homeless. They found officers communicated with the man in a calm, but firm, manner for a prolonged period of time to try to convince him to surrender both dogs.

The owner of the dogs, in his 40s, was given a suspended prison sentence in November 2023 having pleaded guilty to being the owner of a dog dangerously out of control (without injury).

He also pleaded guilty to possession of dogs while under a 20-year disqualification order. He had earlier that month admitted the same offences in relation to an incident in February 2023 in Strutton Ground, Westminster, during which his dogs attacked and blinded a Pomeranian dog.