Thu, Aug 18, 2005 page7

• UK police blamed in shooting

  BOTCHED OPERATION Leaked documents allege that police made a series of errors, and refute claims that a Brazilian man they shot dead had been acting suspiciously

  • AFP AND THE GUARDIAN
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  Anti-terror police in London were under pressure yesterday after leaked documents revealed a catalogue of alleged errors that led to the shooting of a Brazilian man who was mistaken for a suicide bomber.

  The Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC), which is investigating the controversial killing of Jean Charles de Menezes, refused to confirm or deny the new information -- broadcast by ITV News on Tuesday evening -- which contradicted earlier police and eye witness statements.

  Police shot the electrician, 27, at point blank range after he boarded a subway train on July 22, one day after four suspected would-be suicide bombers tried to attack London in a botched re-run of the July 7 atrocity.

  

  A picture grab made available on Tuesday by British ITN News, that obtained the secret photograph of Charles De Menezes, the Brazilian man police shot dead on the tube in London, mistaken for a suicide bomber.

  PHOTO: EPA/ITV

  Initial reports said Menezes had been acting suspiciously -- wearing a bulky jacket, jumping a ticket barrier at Stockwell Underground station, south London, and sprinting on to the subway train -- prior to his death.

  But witness accounts and photographs leaked to ITV painted a very different picture, showing the young man in a light denim jacket, walking calmly into the station. They also revealed that de Menezes was restrained by a police officer on the train before being shot eight times.

  In addition, a police officer outside his flat said he failed to videotape Menezes when the Brazilian left home as he had been on a toilet break.

  The revelations prompted relatives and campaigners to call for a public inquiry into the shooting.

  "My family deserve the full truth about his murder. The truth cannot be hidden any longer. It has to be made public," said Menezes' cousin Allessandro Pereira.

  The Justice4Jean Family campaign said people had been deliberately misled, adding, "We must ensure that the full lessons of this death are learnt by the authorities so that no other innocent Londoner suffers a similar fate."

  The ITV report indicated the operation was flawed from the start as police monitored Menezes' block of flats in Tulse Hill, south London, where they believed two suspects in the July 21 attacks were living.

  The undercover officer outside, who was supposed to identify anyone exiting the building, admitted he had been away from his post when the Brazilian left.

  "I was in the process of relieving myself," he was quoted as saying in documents obtained by ITV News.

  "At this time I was not able to transmit my observations and switch on the video camera at the same time. There is therefore no video footage of this male," he said.

  Closed circuit television footage later captured the electrician entering the station at a normal walking pace, even collecting a free newspaper, and slowly descending on an escalator, according to ITV News.

  Contrary to dramatic witness accounts on the day, Menezes is seen to board the train through the middle doors before pausing, looking left and right, then sitting down in either the second or third seat facing the platform.

  Moments later, police burst in and apparently restrain the Brazilian before pumping seven bullets into his head and one into his shoulder. Three more bullets missed him and the casings were left lying on the floor.

  But the revelation that will prove most uncomfortable for Scotland Yard was that the 27-year-old electrician had already been restrained by a surveillance officer.

  A member of the police surveillance team on the train was quoted as saying: "I heard shouting, which included the word `police,' and turned to face the male in the denim jacket.

  "He immediately stood up and advanced toward me and the CO19 [special security] officers ... I grabbed the male in the denim jacket by wrapping both my arms around his torso, pinning his arms to his side.

  "I then pushed him back on to the seat where he had been previously sitting ... I then heard a gun shot very close to my left ear and was dragged away onto the floor of the carriage."

  Harriet Wistrich, a lawyer for the Menezes family, was shocked by the new details, but said they further vindicated the young electrician.

  "There's obviously some level of incompetence here or some serious breakdown in communications with the various officers involved in surveillance," Wistrich told Channel Four News.

  The police were on a high state of alert because of the July 7 and July 21 bombings, and had been briefed that they may be called upon to carry out new tactics -- shooting dead suspected suicide bombers in order to avoid another atrocity.

  The IPCC investigation report states that the firearms unit had been told that "unusual tactics" might be required and if they "were deployed to intercept a subject and there was an opportunity to challenge, but if the subject was non-compliant, a critical shot may be taken."

  But the report shows that there was a failure in the surveillance operation and officers wrongly believed Menezes could have been one of two suspects -- including Hussein Osman, who they thought was in the building.

  The leaked papers state: "Menezes was observed walking to a bus stop and then boarded a bus, traveling to Stockwell tube station.

  "During the course of this, his description and demeanor was assessed and it was believed he matched the identity of one of the suspected wanted for terrorist offences ... the information was passed through the operations center and gold command made the decision and gave appropriate instructions that de Menezes was to be prevented from entering the tube system.

  "At this stage the operation moved to code red tactic, responsibility was handed over to CO19."

  A senior police source on Tuesday told the Guardian the leaked documents and statements gave an accurate picture of what was known about the shooting, and the mistakes that led up to it.

  Neither Scotland Yard, the Home Office or the IPCC would comment.
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