Met officer charged with murdering Chris Kaba will appear in court today | UK News

A police officer who fired his gun in a chase which led to Chris Kaba being shot and subsequently dying will appear in court today.

The officer, who is being identified as NX121, allegedly fired a single shot, which went through the windscreen of the car Mr Kaba was driving and hit him in the head.

Mr Kaba, 24, had turned into Kirkstall Gardens in Streatham Hill, south London, and collided with a marked police car in the moments before the shooting on September 6 last year.

The officer is set to appear at Westminster magistrates’ court this morning, followed by an appearance at the Old Bailey, in order to deal with bail.

People who have been charged with murder are normally named publicly by the Crown Prosecution Service, but it’s understood this hasn’t happened yet because they intend to apply for anonymity in court.

On Wednesday, Mr Kaba’s loved ones welcomed the decision to charge the officer and said they hope any trial can take place ‘without delay’.

Mr Kaba was being followed by an unmarked police car with no lights or sirens while driving an Audi that was not his on the day he died.

It is rare for police officers to be charged with murder or manslaughter.

Since 1990 there have been 1,869 deaths in or following police custody in England and Wales, the charity Inquest said. Of those cases, 12 have resulted in a murder or manslaughter charge for an officer.

There has only been one conviction of a police officer in that time – West Mercia Police constable Benjamin Monk, who was jailed in 2021 for the manslaughter of former footballer Dalian Atkinson.

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