No misconduct case for PC who tasered man who fell to death

The IOPC said it had concluded that there was no case to answer for the officer

An investigation has concluded that a West Midlands Police officer should not face misconduct proceedings for tasering a man who fell to his death in Birmingham.

Ayuub Abdi, 34, fell from the two-storey window of his room at a multiple occupancy property in Handsworth on 6 September 2023, after police had attended over reports he had attempted to stab two residents.

The Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) said bodycam video showed one of the officers approaching him with his Taser drawn, because he believed he still had a knife.

The watchdog found the Taser was the "most appropriate tactical option" and there was no case to answer for the officer who discharged it.

After a nine-day inquest which ended on Thursday, a jury recorded that Mr Abdi died from head injuries from the fall, during the police's attempt to detain and arrest him.

In their narrative conclusion, the jury said the evidence did not clearly confirm whether the use of a Taser contributed to Mr Abdi's exit from the window.

'No case to answer'

When they attended the address in 2023, some officers went to his room, while others stayed outside, in case he tried to escape via an open window, which had the blinds closed, the IOPC said.

Mr Abdi then got up from a sofa, and was stepping on to the back of a chair when the officer discharged the Taser - Mr Abdi then fell forwards out of the window.

"Our sympathies remain with Mr Abdi's family at this difficult time for them, and all those affected by his tragic death," said IOPC director, Derrick Campbell.

"Our final decision was that there was no case to answer for the officer who discharged his Taser.

"We gave weight to the circumstances faced by the officer, given two people had been injured, and a report by an independent expert who concluded that Taser was the most appropriate tactical option to achieve immediate control of a suspect who was believed to be armed with a knife."

He added there was insufficient evidence upon which a disciplinary panel "could conclude that the officer did not form a belief that Mr Abdi posed a threat to him, or that it was unreasonable in all of the circumstances for him to have done so".

No charges were brought against the officer in relation to Mr Abdi's death.