Outside force to review Met over Stephen Lawrence

An independent police force will be reviewing the Metropolitan Police’s handling of new evidence regarding the Stephen Lawrence murder, the Mayor of London has said.

Stephen was 18 when he was stabbed to death in a racist attack by a group of men in 1993, in south London. Only two of Stephen's killers have been convicted.

After the BBC named a major suspect last year, The Met Police has now apologised to Stephen's mother Baroness Doreen Lawrence for failing to answer questions raised by the investigation into his murder.

An external force is now going to review the handling of the new evidence. When asked whether he had confidence in the Met to deal with the case moving forward, London Mayor Sadiq Khan told BBC News: “I think the family has been let down over the last three decades by police officers.

“Dame Louise Casey in a recent report found that the police service was still institutionally racist. I think there are lessons to be learned. I had a frank conversation with Sir Mark Rowley today. He’ll be asking a separate police force to look into the assessment that the Met Police have made in relation to the fresh evidence.

“I’m hoping that reassures the Lawrence family, Doreen in particular, that under the new leadership in the Met Police service, they will redouble their efforts to make sure that Doreen and the family think that this police service has learned the lessons from yesteryear.”

Speaking ahead of the 31st anniversary of her son's death, Baroness Lawrence said that without the BBC investigation, the family would not know what they do now.