WE’RE DISGUSTED AND WE’RE ANGRY Cops look to be clear over arrest death
POLICE officers accused of using excessive force in restraining a dad who died after they pinned him to the ground will not face criminal charges, reports suggest.
The family of Sheku Bayoh, who lost his life after he was held down by up to nine cops, are “disgusted” by the news.
The 31-year-old died following an early morning incident in Kircaldy in May 2015.
His family claim the father of two died from “positional asphyxiation” and that he was left unable to breathe as a number of officers forcibly restrained him, by lying and kneeling on him on the street.
An initial post mortem was inconclusive but revealed Sheku had sustained 30 injuries to his head, chest, legs and arms.
His family and their lawyer Aamer Anwar were due to meet Lord Advocate James Wolffe to discover the fate of the officers.
But a Scottish Mail on Sunday report claimed a “well-placed source” within the justice system said no criminal charges will be brought against any of the officers involved. Anwar said: “The family are disgusted and angry. “I was told by the Crown Office that they have not made a decision and will meet with the family on October 3. “If this is an attempt to leak out information to cushion the blow then it’s simply an absolute disgrace. “The family have waited three years and four months to get a decision on what happens. It’s a joke. “I would want to know who is leaking this information from the Lord Advocate’s office.
“What’s the priority – the family or telling a newspaper?”
Sheku, a trainee gas engineer, had been living in Kirkcaldy with his partner Colette Bell and their three-month-old baby son.
On the morning of his death, police received a report that a man had been seen carrying a knife and acting erratically.
Sheku had no record of violence and the family’s lawyer claims police mistook him for a terrorist and used CS spray and batons on him. The family also claim police gave them five versions of how he had died in a 10-hour period – including that he had been found lying in the street by a member of the public – before being told he had died in police custody.
A toxicology report revealed Sheku had traces of ecstasy and legal high alpha-PVP in his body.
A spokesman for the Crown Office said: “We’re meeting the family in the near future to update them and it would not be appropriate to comment further.”