The officer who restrained 20-year-old Rashan Charles in Dalston, East London shortly before he died on July 22 is being investigated for gross misconduct.
Rashan died after being held on the ground by Metropolitan Police officers after entering a shop in the area. His death sparked a number of angry demonstrations in Hackney’s Kingsland Road.
The Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC), which is investigating his death, said yesterday: ‘The officer may have breached the police standards of professional behaviour regarding the detention and restraint of Rashan as well as how he dealt with Rashan’s medical emergency.’
IPCC commissioner Cindy Butts said: ‘The IPCC investigation into the circumstances surrounding the death of Rashan Charles in Hackney on 22 July has entered a new phase. IPCC investigators have formally notified the officer who initially restrained Rashan that he is being investigated for gross misconduct.’
Ms Butts said investigators have analysed the CCTV and body-worn video evidence gathered and considered the officer’s detailed statement as well as statements from other witnesses to the incident. While this move indicates a new phase in our investigation, it does not necessarily mean misconduct proceedings will follow,’ she added. ‘We will keep the position under review as the investigation progresses.’
The IPCC previously said it had found that after Rashan was detained, attempts were made to remove an object from his mouth or throat. It was later revealed that a package removed from his throat contained a mixture of caffeine and paracetamol.
• Three police officers told repeated lies about a cloth covering placed over the head of a mental health patient who later died, a court has heard. Kingsley Burrell died aged 29, four days after being detained by police. Jurors heard the men ‘put their heads together’ and agreed to lie after the death in March 2011.
Paul Adey, 36, Mark Fannon, 45, and Paul Greenfield, 50, are on trial at Birmingham Crown Court, and deny charges of perjury. The court heard numerous witnesses saw Mr Burrell’s head or face covered with either a towel, sheet or blanket when he was placed in a seclusion room at the city’s Oleaster mental health unit.
CCTV footage presented in court showed Mr Burrell, who died from brain damage following prolonged restraint in March 2011, with a white head covering as he was led out of an A&E ward.
Prosecutor Michael Burrows QC alleged the three officers lied at an inquest in 2015 by claiming not to have seen anything covering Mr Burrell’s face. He told the court: ‘Quite simply, we say that these police officers have lied in their accounts about that.’
