Sheku’s family weren’t well treated, says ex-law chief

THE grieving family of a man who died in custody were ‘not well treated’ following his death, Scotland’s former top prosecutor said.

Sheku Bayoh, 31, died after he was restrained on the ground by police officers in Kirkcaldy, Fife, in May 2015.

Yesterday, an inquiry into the father-of-two’s death was told that former Lord Advocate James Wolffe, KC, had not been properly briefed on the case.

Mr Wolffe had not been passed adequate notes by his predecessor, Frank Mulholland, when he took over the job in June 2016.

The 61-year-old told Angela Grahame, KC, the inquiry’s senior counsel, that while it would have been impractical to have detailed briefings for all cases, Mr Bayoh’s should have been treated differently because of Mr Mulholland’s involvement and the ‘substantive considerations’ of the case.

He said: ‘First of all, we have an individual who died in contact with the police. Secondly there was the issue of race, which was an aspect of this case.

‘And thirdly there was, as I understood it and I think I did understand this at the time, that the family had been, if I can put it this way, not well treated at the outset of events immediately after the death of their loved one.

‘My understanding was that these were part of the considerations that had led my predecessor to take quite an active role at an early stage.’ He told of ‘commitments’ which had been made to Mr Bayoh’s family by the previous Lord Advocate, which included holding an inquiry regardless of if there was a criminal prosecution or not.

Following the first of two days of evidence from Mr Wolffe, a statement was issued by the Bayohs via their lawyer, Aamer Anwar.

They accused him of betraying ‘the many promises that were made’ by Mr Mulholland.

Outside the hearing in Edinburgh, Mr Anwar said: ‘The family believe [Mr Wolffe] presided over a Crown Office that was unbelievably cruel and cynical in the treatment of the Bayoh family, and that he ultimately is responsible for the betrayal of justice and presiding over a culture of institutional incompetence and racism.’

The Sheku Bayoh inquiry is examining the circumstances leading to Mr Bayoh’s death, how police dealt with the aftermath, the investigation into his death, and whether or not race was a factor.

Ms Grahame yesterday told the inquiry in Edinburgh that witnesses had been asked if the ‘Crown took all reasonable steps to unmask any racist motive’.

The inquiry counsel asked Mr Wolffe: ‘Looking at the picture that I presented to you, are you satisfied that all questions of race and race motivation were explored appropriately during that period of Crown precognition?’

He replied: ‘Given what you have read to me, I can’t think that they were. From what you’ve said, there were clearly a set of questions to be asked.

‘What you have identified is a series of questions that could and should have been asked in the context of examining the question of restraint.’

The inquiry, before Lord Bracadale, continues.