Man shot by police was lawfully killed, inquest finds

A man who was fatally shot by armed officers after entering a police station car park holding a knife and a bag with a cat inside was lawfully killed, an inquest has found.

A jury reached a conclusion on Thursday after hearing evidence into the death of Marius Ciolac, who was shot outside Ascot Drive police station in Derby on the morning of 7 October 2022.

The three-week inquest heard Mr Ciolac, originally from Cernavoda in Romania, entered the police station compound through a sliding gate at about 10:00 BST before a Taser, a baton round and a stun grenade were used, and he was shot in the abdomen minutes later.

Mr Ciolac's family previously described the 35-year-old as "sweet and gentle", and told the jury he had a difficult childhood.

Mr Ciolac went into cardiac arrest and died in hospital after being shot in the lower abdomen, the inquest heard

Reading out their conclusion at Derby Coroner's Court, jurors outlined the events as they unfolded in October 2022.

Mr Ciolac entered the car park holding a knife in one hand and a bag containing a live cat in the other.

He brandished his knife, caused damage to the police station and did not respond to officers' commands despite "understanding English well", the jury said.

The Taser used on him was ineffective due to the thickness of his clothes, the hearing was told.

Armed officers - named in court as officers A and B - responded to the scene with both lethal and unlethal options, the jury said.

The conclusion read out in court stated Mr Ciolac was moving towards the armed officers "with purpose", fixating on officer A, who fired the fatal shot.

'Extremely rare event'

Deputy chief constable Simon Blatchly, of Derbyshire Police, said what happened in 2022 had a "long-lasting effect on all those involved", and sent his condolences to Mr Ciolac's family and friends.

He added: "As was heard during the three weeks of evidence and witness testimony the situation that was faced that day was unprecedented.

"Officers take an oath to protect life, and they did all they could to protect themselves, their colleagues, the public, and ultimately Mr Ciolac."

He said attempts were made to negotiate with Mr Ciolac and "bring the incident to a safe conclusion".

"The use of a firearm by an officer in Derbyshire is an extremely rare event, with most officers going their entire career without ever firing their weapon," he added.

Mr Blatchly said all the officers involved on that day "were clear that they had to protect their colleagues, the public and try, to the best of their abilities, to ensure that Mr Ciolac did not come to harm".

"Those officers, as well as civilian staff inside the building, are not robots, they are mothers, fathers, husbands, wives, sisters and brothers," he added.

"And while they understand the risks that their roles may place them in – it does not mean that they do not feel fear."

He added he was "immensely proud of the manner in which they conducted themselves", adding the force would continue to support the officers and staff affected.

The inquest has been looking back at events leading up to the fatal shooting

An investigation conducted by the police watchdog into the fatal shooting also found the officers' use of force was "appropriate in the circumstances".

A spokesperson for the Independent Office for Police Conduct said its investigation ended in April 2023 and the findings could now be released following the conclusion of the inquest.

The probe found officer's A actions "were reasonable and proportionate, given the circumstances and the threat to life he perceived".

IOPC director Derrick Campbell passed on his condolences and added: "Fatal police shootings are fortunately rare and lethal force must only be used by officers when absolutely necessary.

"When such incidents happen, it's vital that the circumstances surrounding the shooting are thoroughly and independently examined.

"During the course of the police interactions with Mr Ciolac, he repeatedly ignored instructions to drop the knife and officers initially tried to resolve the threat using various forms of non-lethal force, which were ultimately unsuccessful.

"The officer who fired the fatal shot said he feared for his life as Mr Ciolac ran towards him while holding a knife, and his account was corroborated by the extensive CCTV and police body worn footage reviewed by our investigation.

"Based on the available evidence, we found that the decision to shoot Mr Ciolac was reasonable in the circumstances."