Yahoo News Chris Kaba's criminal record and Martyn Blake shooting explained
Chris Kaba was shot dead by Met Police Sergeant Martyn Blake in September 2022. Tonight BBC Panorama will delve into the case on BBC One at 8pm with exclusive interviews with Kaba's parents.
But first, let's answer some of the background questions you might have before viewing, like who Chris Kaba was, what happened the night of the fatal shooting and who was the man who pulled the trigger.
Two weeks ago Sgt Martyn Blake was acquitted of Kaba's murder on Monday, October 21, a decision which sparked controversy across the nation - particularly in black communities. Meanwhile, rank and file officers were understood to “remain astonished” that criminal charges against Mr Blake were brought. The Police Federation of England and Wales said officers were “rightly asking what protection they have when doing such a dangerous, complex and demanding job”.
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Who was Chris Kaba, the 67 mob, and what was his criminal record?
Chris Kaba was just 24 when he died - a much-loved family man, a father-to-be, and a "core member" of one of London's most violent criminal gangs. The 67 gang in Brixton - named after the telephone area code - is the most violent gang in the Lambeth area who also do drill rap, the Old Bailey heard.
Just six days before he was killed, he was allegedly seen trying to shoot a rival '17 gang' member in a busy Hackney nightclub on CCTV on August 30, 2022, an earlier trial of 67 gang associates was told. He allegedly shot Brandon Maltushi, 25, in the leg inside the Oval Space nightclub before chasing his victim down the street and shooting him again in the other leg.
Defence barrister Patrick Gibbs KC said that had Kaba not been shot dead, he would have been tried in court for attempted murder for this shooting, and he labelled him a "core member" of the violent gang.
This shooting was just the latest in a long career of violent crimes Chris Kaba committed, graduating from knives to gun crime, the Standard reported.
He began at just 13 years old when he was found with a kitchen knife after a large fight
In June 2012, Kaba was handed a youth referral order, the Standard said
In October 2012, he was convicted of wounding with intent and sentenced to two years in a Young Offenders’ Institution
In 2013 he was convicted for burglary for the “steaming” (mass gang theft) of a mobile phone shop which resulted in a youth rehabilitation order
In August 2015, Kaba and three friends were involved in a gang-motivated knife attack - a well-known rival was brutally attacked at Carphone Warehouse on Streatham High Road a knife, dog chain and belts in broad daylight. Their victim was left with several stab wounds and a broken arm, police said. Kaba was convicted of affray and given a one-year training and detention order. Three were jailed: Shemiah Bell, Marcus Pottinger and Connel Bamgboye
In December 2017, Kaba fired a sawn-off shotgun outside a party in Canning Town. No one was hurt, but he was sentenced to four years in prison for possession of an imitation firearm with intent to cause fear of violence in January 2019
Before he was sentenced, in July 2018, Kaba himself was stabbed at his own 19th birthday party when gang rivals attacked the unlicensed music event in Romford he was at. He survived knife wounds to his stomach and refused to cooperate will police - trying to find his attackers himself. Connel Bamgboye and another person were shot as part of this bloody turf war
In 2020, a conviction for possession of a knife and failing to stop for police led to a five-month suspended sentence
In August 2022, he allegedly shot Brandon Maltushi in a busy Hackney nightclub and chased him down the street, shooting him again, as mentioned above
In September 2022, the month of his killing, Kaba’s then pregnant fiancée, Karimah Waite, obtained a 28-day domestic violence protection order, barring him from contacting her on social media or entering her street in Battersea, the Standard reported. Their daughter was born in the autumn
Kaba's family were devastated to hear of Sgt Martyn Blake's acquittal and maintained that he was a much-loved person in their community.
What happened during the shooting?
A convoy of police followed Chris Kaba in a blue Audi Q8 through South London at about 10pm on September 5, 2022, as it had been linked to a shooting the night before. Police decided they would stop the car when it turned into a side street to remove the driver and arrest him
As he turned from New Park Road onto Kirkstall Gardens, a marked armed response vehicle was waiting for him. Two other marked police cars blocked him from coming back the way he came while a third unmarked car drove up into the rear.
Armed police surrounded Kaba's Audi on foot and rushed to the window shouting, "Armed police, show me your hands." Another officer smashed the back window and shouted at him to get out of the car.
At first, Kaba drives forward, smashing down the side of the police car in front and becoming wedged between it and a parked car on the side of the road. As the unmarked car comes up behind, he reverses into it in an attempt to escape.
It is at this point, 17 seconds after Kaba was trapped, that Sergeant Martyn Blake fires a single shot from in front of Kaba's car. The bullet went through Kaba's windscreen and into his forehead, killing him. Officers start shooting "shots fired" moments after the ensuing silence of the shot.
No weapons were found inside the car, which Kaba did not own, but Blake said he feared he could be hit by the car and was scared for his life and for the lives of his colleagues. A single bullet hole was seen on the driver's side windscreen the day after as forensics scoured the scene for the ensuing investigation.
Who is Sergeant Martyn Blake
Sergeant Martyn Blake, 40, is the man who shot Chris Kaba dead in September 2022. He was charged with Kaba's murder but was acquitted unanimously on October 21 after a two-week trial. He did not know of Kaba's past crimes but was aware that this car had been linked to a shooting reported the night before.
The suspects were still at large, and no gun had been recovered, Met Commissioner Sir Mark Rowley said. Blake told the Old Bailey that he did not intend to kill Kaba and only meant to stop the car. He said he was aiming for the central body mass of Kaba. He said: “It was the only way I thought I had at the time to stop the vehicle.”
Adding: "I felt that the threat to my colleagues was such that I had to take that action at the time.” The 40-year-old is reportedly living in hiding, fearing for his life and his family after a £10,000 bounty was offered in revenge for Kaba’s death to anyone prepared to kill him.
The aftermath - reforms
Scotland Yard hailed policing reforms announced by the Government as progress towards a “fairer and faster” system after the Home Secretary said accused firearms officers will remain anonymous unless they are convicted.
Commissioner Sir Mark Rowley said the changes represented a “welcome step forward” after Yvette Cooper unveiled a string of measures in the wake of the Chris Kaba case.
“These measures represent positive progress toward a system that is both fairer and faster, supporting the vast majority of officers who serve with integrity every day,” he said.
“The importance of these changes couldn’t have been demonstrated more clearly than by the acquittal of our firearms officer Sergeant Martyn Blake.
“Accountability of the law is critical, but the current system is protracted and unbalanced and fails to secure the confidence of the public and officers.
“Over many years this has created a culture where our officers are increasingly more worried about a skewed, imbalanced system than they are the dangerous criminals they face on the streets. If this continues, this risks making the public less safe.”
Earlier, Ms Cooper told MPs a review of how police who take fatal shots in the line of duty are held to account found the system was “not commanding the confidence of either the public or the police” amid wider concerns about disciplinary proceedings.
Ms Cooper said the case happened “against a backdrop of wider and long-standing concerns about accountability, standards and confidence” and amid “fallen community confidence in policing and the criminal justice system across the country”, particularly among black communities.
Speaking in the Commons on Wednesday, Ms Cooper said: “The accountability review found that the current system for holding police officers to account is not commanding the confidence of either the public or the police.
“Accountability and misconduct proceedings are too often plagued by delays stretching for years, which are damaging for complainants, officers and forces alike, and the system has become much more complex, with confusion over multiple thresholds for different investigations, a lack of clarity, especially involving specialist capabilities.
“There are also wider concerns about the misconduct system, because the focus when things go wrong can end up being entirely on the decisions of the individual officer.
“So systems failings like poor training, unmanageable caseloads or wider false practices are not sufficiently considered or followed up so too little changes.”
As well as introducing a “presumption of anonymity for firearms officers subject to criminal trial following a police shooting in the course of their professional duties, up to the point of conviction”, Ms Cooper vowed to raise the threshold for officers facing court so it matches the measure the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) uses for making charging decisions about members of the public.
This would mean charges would be brought only when there is a reasonable prospect of conviction, instead of if there is an indication of criminality using limited evidence.
“Currently, that threshold is lower for police officers, and that is not justified,” she said.
Bereaved families will also be given the right to appeal when the IOPC decides not to seek a charge against an officer.
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