Family of slain Brazilian to meet investigators
(Reuters)
Updated: 2005-09-29 10:41

The family of Jean Charles de Menezes, the Brazilian mistakenly shot dead by police who thought he was a suicide bomber, are due to meet on Thursday with independent investigators probing his death.

Police shot Menezes, 27, seven times in the head on July 22 as he boarded an underground train at Stockwell station in south London.

They were hunting men behind a botched attack the previous day and believed the electrician had a bomb.

On Wednesday the family visited Stockwell station to see the scene of his death and demanded justice for their slain son.

"Only Jesus knows our pain and suffering," said a tearful Maria Otone da Menezes, the dead man's mother. "We are here for justice."

On Thursday the family are set to meet the Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC) which is looking into the events that led to the shooting.

The incident came the day after four bombers failed in a bid to blow up three underground trains and a bus, and two weeks after suicide bombers killed 52 people in an identical plot.

Maria Otoni de Menezes (R), mother of Brazilian man shot dead by British police, is comforted by surviving son Giovanni da Silva during a news conference with close family members at Lambeth Town Hall in south London September 28, 2005. [Reuters]

The family have demanded that the officers responsible for the killing should be arrested and prosecuted and said London police chief Ian Blair should also face punishment.

"We want to see those responsible caught and judged," the dead man's brother Giovani told a news conference.

Police have admitted making a mistake and apologised. Early details of a supposedly secret independent inquiry into the killing have revealed a series of communications blunders between police teams with shoot-to-kill authority.

The incident, and the way it was handled, deeply embarrassed Blair and his police force, which had initially been praised for its investigations into the attacks.

Initial reports from police and witnesses said de Menezes had been wearing a bulky jacket, had vaulted a ticket barrier and run when challenged by officers.

But leaked details of evidence submitted to the IPCC suggested all those details were incorrect, provoking an angry response from de Menezes's family who accused the police of lying.

Blair admitted the aftermath of the shooting had been mishandled but denied they had tried to mislead the family.

Brazil sent investigators to meet British detectives and the IPCC after which the ambassador to London said he had seen no evidence there had been a cover-up. The IPCC investigation is expected to conclude around the end of the year.

Close

Australia fending off bird flu Massive Indonesian vaccination drive against polio resumes Hurricane Rita aftermath in the United States

Today's Top News     Top World News
China, US edge closer to textile trade deal         Taipei urged to respond to panda goodwill         US happy with China yuan moves, wants more         China sets blueprint for fighting flu pandemic         China seen world leader in clean energy         Doctors not up to scratch on hepatitis	Pakistan's Aziz wants nuclear weapons-free Korean Peninsula       Israel shuts down Hamas charities       Bush warns of Iraq violence before vote       Army ends probe on porn site photos of Iraq corpses       US Congress warns Japan of possible sanctions over beef       US, Japan sign strategic development alliance