Police fatal shooting: Watchdog to carry out THREE investigations
PUBLIC INQUIRY RULED DEATH WASN’T UNLAWFUL BUT ‘RAISED QUESTIONS OF GMP OPERATION’
A WATCHDOG has begun three new investigations into the death of man shot dead by a bullet fired by a police marksman.
Retired officers, all of whom held senior positions within Greater Manchester Police, are being investigated for gross misconduct which led to the death of Anthony Grainger.
Mr Grainger’s family have welcomed further investigation and said they hope continued scrutiny of GMP and their actions will ‘pave the way for urgent root and branch reform of the force.’
The unarmed father-of-two was fatally wounded by a GMP firearms officer during a police operation in Cheshire in March 2012. He was shot in the chest by a single bullet fired by a police marksman known as Q9.
At the time, Mr Grainger was sat behind the wheel of a stolen red Audi in a car park in the village of Culcheth, near Warrington. His death resulted in two investigations, completed in 2013 and 2018.
The Anthony Grainger Public Inquiry was concluded in July 2019.
The 345-page report found that the shooting was not unlawful and stopped short of recommending any further action to be taken against any of the police officers involved.
But it detailed how the operation was based on intelligence which contained ‘serious inaccuracies, presenting a distorted and in some respects exaggerated picture of the threat Mr Grainger presented.’
It also stated that commanding officers ‘lacked the requisite level of professional competence,’ and planning was ‘inadequate and ineffective.’
As a result of the public inquiry, GMP made referrals to the Independent Office for Police Conduct in relation to conduct matters arising from Mr Justice Teague QC’s report.
The watchdog requested a ‘substantial amount of material’ from GMP which has been under review, alongside the inquiry report, since last October. The new investigations did not form part of the IOPC’s original investigations, as this material was presented as live evidence during the public inquiry. The new investigations relate to the conduct of six officers.
The first will look at former Assistant Chief Constable Terry Sweeney, former Superintendent Mark Granby and a former Chief Inspector and their command and control of the policing operation, on March 2 and 3, 2012. All three former officers are retired and each has been informed that they are under investigation for gross misconduct.
The second investigation will look at GMP’s acquisition of a CS dispersal canister which was not approved by the Home Office and was used during the operation.
The probe will look specifically at the actions of a former Chief Inspector and a former Inspector, who are both now retired. Both have been informed that they are under investigation for gross misconduct.
A third investigation will look at the conduct of a serving GMP officer regarding their management of two firearms officers’ training records.
Both officers – known as X7 and Z15 during the public inquiry – were present during the police operation.
The officer has been informed they are under investigation regarding allegations of misconduct.
IOPC Regional Director Amanda Rowe said: “The inquiry heard live evidence, some of it new, and therefore not available to us for our original investigations. It is therefore important that these matters should be scrutinised by way of independent and impartial investigations.”
Mr Grainger’s mother Marina said: “Whilst we welcome these further investigations into the conduct of GMP throughout what has essentially been a bungled police operation, eight years down the line we are still searching for some form of accountability for the unlawful death of Anthony.”
GMP said in a statement: “Following the publication of the Anthony Grainger Public Inquiry report in July 2019, Greater Manchester Police sent a further referral to the IOPC.
“The IOPC are to conduct independent investigations as a result of this referral which will be supported by GMP.”