Brazilian Family: Tapes Prove Police Lied
Associated Press | 01.10.2005 07:26
It would appear as if this man was silenced for something he saw, and as the devices of 7/21 were obviously planted in order to frame someone, did he witness something he shouldn't have?
Brazilian Family: Tapes Prove Police Lied
Thu Sep 29, 2:55 PM ET
LONDON - The family of a Brazilian man killed by police who mistook him for a terrorist watched videotapes of the shooting while meeting with independent investigators Thursday and said the tapes prove police lied about what happened.
Undercover police shot and killed electrician Jean Charles de Menezes, 27, aboard a subway train July 22, a day after four failed attempts to bomb the city's transport system. Two weeks earlier, four suspected suicide bombers had killed 52 commuters in similar attacks.
Police shot de Menezes seven times in the head and once in the shoulder after following him onto a train at Stockwell Underground station. Some of the closed-circuit television cameras there were not working, so the entire incident was not recorded.
De Menezes' brother, Giovani, said the tapes supported the family's belief that police lied about the case.
"The film showed that Jean did not have suspicious behavior. For sure they (police) lied to the family," he said.
De Menezes' mother, Maria Otone de Menezes, said Wednesday her son had been treated "like a mad dog" and called for the arrest of the officers responsible for his death. The family toured the subway station Wednesday.
Harriet Wistrich, a lawyer representing the family, read a statement to reporters after Thursday's viewing of the videotapes.
"It was very distressing to see how completely relaxed and normal Jean Charles appeared, particularly in the light of statements made immediately after his death," the statement said.
Police said immediately after the incident that the shooting was directly linked to the bombing attempts the day before. Police also did not immediately contradict media reports that Menezes was acting suspiciously, wearing a bulky coat and had jumped the subway turnstile.
Images of the scene showed Menezes wearing a jean jacket. He was unarmed.
Police repeatedly apologized for the killing but deny covering up what happened. Metropolitan Police Commissioner Sir Ian Blair says his officers must have the right to shoot to kill in some cases.
Menezes family members, including the dead man's parents, met with the Independent Police Complaints Commission, which is investigating the incident.
"The investigation is not just for the family, it is for all the people in London," Wistrich said in the statement. "We do not want any more innocent people in London to be killed ... We hope lessons will be learned as a result of the outcome of this inquiry."
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20050929/ap_on_re_eu/britain_bombings
Met chief tried to delay shooting probe
http://www.channel4.com/news/content/news-storypage.jsp?id=13715
Thu Sep 29, 2:55 PM ET
LONDON - The family of a Brazilian man killed by police who mistook him for a terrorist watched videotapes of the shooting while meeting with independent investigators Thursday and said the tapes prove police lied about what happened.
Undercover police shot and killed electrician Jean Charles de Menezes, 27, aboard a subway train July 22, a day after four failed attempts to bomb the city's transport system. Two weeks earlier, four suspected suicide bombers had killed 52 commuters in similar attacks.
Police shot de Menezes seven times in the head and once in the shoulder after following him onto a train at Stockwell Underground station. Some of the closed-circuit television cameras there were not working, so the entire incident was not recorded.
De Menezes' brother, Giovani, said the tapes supported the family's belief that police lied about the case.
"The film showed that Jean did not have suspicious behavior. For sure they (police) lied to the family," he said.
De Menezes' mother, Maria Otone de Menezes, said Wednesday her son had been treated "like a mad dog" and called for the arrest of the officers responsible for his death. The family toured the subway station Wednesday.
Harriet Wistrich, a lawyer representing the family, read a statement to reporters after Thursday's viewing of the videotapes.
"It was very distressing to see how completely relaxed and normal Jean Charles appeared, particularly in the light of statements made immediately after his death," the statement said.
Police said immediately after the incident that the shooting was directly linked to the bombing attempts the day before. Police also did not immediately contradict media reports that Menezes was acting suspiciously, wearing a bulky coat and had jumped the subway turnstile.
Images of the scene showed Menezes wearing a jean jacket. He was unarmed.
Police repeatedly apologized for the killing but deny covering up what happened. Metropolitan Police Commissioner Sir Ian Blair says his officers must have the right to shoot to kill in some cases.
Menezes family members, including the dead man's parents, met with the Independent Police Complaints Commission, which is investigating the incident.
"The investigation is not just for the family, it is for all the people in London," Wistrich said in the statement. "We do not want any more innocent people in London to be killed ... We hope lessons will be learned as a result of the outcome of this inquiry."
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20050929/ap_on_re_eu/britain_bombings Met chief tried to delay shooting probe
http://www.channel4.com/news/content/news-storypage.jsp?id=13715
Associated Press
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