Police shooting victim Chris Kaba was a “core member” of one of London’s most dangerous gangs and would have stood trial for attempted murder over a nightclub shooting if he had not been killed, it can be now reported.
Metropolitan Police marksman Martyn Blake was on Monday acquitted of murdering the 24-year-old who tried to ram his way out of a police stop in Streatham, southwest London, on 5 September, 2022.
It can now be revealed that Kaba shot a man twice in the legs in an attack linked to gang rivalry just six days earlier.
CCTV shown to a jury shows Kaba discharging the gun on a packed dancefloor at the Oval Space nightclub in Hackney, east London, on 30 August, wounding Brandon Malutshi in the thigh.
He then pursued the victim outside the venue, firing at a wounded Malutshi, injuring him yet again in the other leg. Malutshi was airlifted to hospital and treated for the bullet injuries, but later discharged himself.
Kaba’s friends Shemiah Bell and Marcus Pottinger, both 31, were found guilty of wounding with intent over their role in the nightclub shooting in a trial at the Old Bailey earlier this year.
The two defendants and 29-year-old Connel Bamgboye were also found guilty of possession of a firearm with intent to cause fear of violence. Three other defendants were cleared of all the charges against them.
Reporting of the trial, Kaba’s role in the shooting and his links to the Lambeth ‘67’ gang were postponed until the murder trial of Mr Blake, also known as officer NX121, was concluded.
Mr Blake’s lawyers had applied for details of Kaba’s previous convictions to be introduced as “bad character” evidence in that trial, but a judge ruled they should not be disclosed to the jury because the firearms officer did not know who was driving the car when he took the fatal shot.
The police marksman and his team started pursuing the Audi Q8 and attempted to carry out an enforced “stop and extraction” after the car’s number plate was linked to a separate shotgun incident in Brixton the night before.
In the closing stages of Mr Blake’s trial, Kaba’s family made an application for the ban on revealing his criminal history to be extended until after an inquest into his death had concluded.
However, this was refused by Mr Justice Goss, who lifted the reporting restrictions at the Old Bailey on Tuesday.
In a letter to the court, the Met’s deputy assistant commissioner Stuart Cundy had called for Kaba’s convictions to be made public because there would be less support for “anti-police violence” if full details were released.
It can now be reported that Kaba had previously been to prison and was due to face a gang injunction hearing 10 days after he was killed.
Kaba received his first conviction aged 13, another aged 14 and a third for affray and possession of an offensive weapon aged 17, in 2015.
Further convictions, disclosed at a preliminary hearing without the jury present, include possession of an imitation firearm in 2017 and possession of a knife in 2020.
Such were the police’s fears about the risk of reprisal attacks from the ‘67’ gang after Mr Blake shot Kaba, lawyers argued that the officer’s identity should remain hidden and he should stand trial under the cypher NX121.
The officer’s bid for anonymity was successfully challenged by the press and his identity was later revealed as Martyn Blake.
Bell was jailed for 10 years over his role in the Hackney nightclub shooting, Pottinger was jailed for nine years and Bamgboye imprisoned for 5.5 years.
Meanwhile the unanimous acquittal of police marksman Mr Blake has sparked anger on all sides, with Kaba’s family revealing they are “devastated” as they vowed to continue fighting for justice.
Police figures have questioned why the case was ever brought to court, with colleagues said to “remain astonished” that Mr Blake ever faced charges.
However, the contents of a note which the jury requested to read out along with the not guilty verdict will never be revealed after the judge ruled it could not be disclosed.
A fellow firearms officer who was at the scene called for police officers who take fatal shots to face court martial-style hearings rather than jury trials, adding: “There’s a problem when police officers are scrutinised by people who don’t necessarily understand the pressures and the issues involved.”
Speaking in parliament, former Met commissioner Lord Hogan-Howe said the legal system should give police the benefit of the doubt.
Highlighting the important work of police firearms officers, the independent crossbencher added: “They are paid no more for taking that awful responsibility. They do not go to work each day to kill anyone.
“And it does seem as though the system doesn’t give them the benefit of doubt that was given by the jury in this case.”
Mr Blake will be immediately reinstated to his job but will need to undergo refresher training before being deployed operationally. Watchdog the Independent Office for Police Conduct will decide whether he should face disciplinary proceedings.
