Jermaine Baker shooting: Firearms officer will not be charged

Jermaine Baker was shot in Bracknell Close, near Wood Green Crown Court

A Met Police firearms officer will face no charges over the shooting of a man who was killed in a botched attempt to free a prisoner, prosecutors said.

Jermaine Baker was killed in London by armed officers in December 2015.

He was with two other men in a car near Wood Green Crown Court who had intended to help spring an inmate from a prison van.

Firearms officers were deployed to foil the plan and the 28-year-old was shot dead during the escape attempt.

Mr Baker's family previously raised "serious concerns" over his death saying: "Our priority is to find out the truth and have anyone responsible for his death held to account."

Last year the family failed at the High Court to stop the officer who managed the operation from resigning from the Met.

An imitation firearm was later found in the car Jermaine Baker had been sitting in

A Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) spokesman said: "The officers reasonably believed that the men in the car were dangerous individuals, who were armed and prepared to use their weapons to achieve their criminal purpose.

"Having taken account of all the evidence provided by the Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC), the CPS has concluded that there is not a realistic prospect of conviction.

"The prosecution could not prove to the required standard that [the officer] was being untruthful about his belief that Mr Baker was armed and reaching for a weapon to fire [at] the officers."

'Professional crime'

The officer had fired one shot which hit and killed Mr Baker, from Tottenham.

A search found Mr Baker was unarmed but an imitation firearm was found in a holdall in the rear foot well of the car, the CPS said.

The IPCC said it was aware of the CPS decision and was waiting for a response from the Met.

At the time, Mr Baker and his accomplices were attempted to spring Izzet Eren, who was being held on remand at HMP Wormwood Scrubs accused of gun offences, from a prison van going to court.

At the trial of one of Mr Baker's accomplices, Eren Hasyer, Woolwich Crown Court heard the prisoner hatched the escape plot from his cell using a smuggled mobile phone.

Hasyer was found guilty of aiding the attempt to free Eren from the prison van.

Two other men, Nathan Mason and Gokay Sogucakli, had admitted being part of the plan before Hasyer's trial began.

Speaking after Hasyer's conviction, Det Ch Supt Tom Manson, of the Met, described the escape attmpmt as "a bold, well planned and carefully thought out conspiracy that bears all the hallmarks of a professional crime."