Monday 26 June 2017

PCs injured in London protest Edir Frederico Da Costa death

Edir Frederico Da Costa with his son
Pic:Edir Frederico Da Costa died on 21 June
Staff reporter(wp):
Six police officers have been injured and four people were arrested in a protest over the death of a young father following a traffic stop.
Bricks were thrown and fires were lit outside Stratford bus station and Forest Gate police station in London.
Protesters allege Edir Frederico Da Costa, 25, was "brutally beaten" by Met Police officers earlier this month.
The police watchdog is investigating the treatment of Mr Da Costa, who died six days after he was stopped.
Campaigners claimed his neck was broken and he had suffered head and other injuries after being stopped by Met officers in a car containing three people.
The Independent Police Complaints Commission said a preliminary post-mortem examination, carried out on Thursday, indicated he did not have a broken neck or other spinal injuries and that he did not have bleeding to the brain.
"Rigorous investigations" into the cause of his death were continuing, it said.
The police watchdog said it was releasing the information because it was concerned about the "rapid spread of false and potentially inflammatory information".
Earlier on Sunday evening, Borough Commander Supt Ian Larnder stood in the middle of a group of protesters trying to answer their questions and calm tensions.
One protester rode his motorbike up to the police line and revved his engine in front of officers.
Another motorcyclist turned his bike towards the officers and span his wheels so that smoke blew towards them.
Firefighters, protected by police, put out a fire which had been started in a bin in Richmond Road. Bins were also set alight near a McDonald's in Romford Road.
Bricks were ripped from a wall and thrown at police. Six police officers were injured, with four taken to hospital. A police sergeant had facial injuries while a police constable suffered head injuries.
One person was arrested on suspicion of disorder offences, while three other people were held on suspicion of arson and criminal damage.
Family campaigners said the violence was not coming from them, and insisted it had been set up as a peaceful march.
The force said the number of protesters started to dwindle just before 23:00 BST on Sunday.
Mr Da Costa, known by friends as Edson, died on 21 June, six days after being stopped in a car in Woodcocks, Beckton, in Newham, east London.
In a statement posted on an online GoFundMe page, his family said: "This is a call for justice, not just for Edson but for all young men that are forgotten and unprotected in this reckless system."
They have called for any witnesses to come forward to the IPCC, in particular anyone with video footage.
Nearly £5,000 has been raised on the fundraising site.
Grime musician Stormzy tweeted #justiceforEdson last Friday.
Last week, Mr Larnder said in a statement: "All police officers are fully aware that they will be asked to account for their actions - officers are not exempt from the law and we would not wish to be.
"I know that Edir's family, friends and the wider community want answers, but it is important that the (IPCC) investigation is allowed to take place to establish the full facts of what happened before any conclusions are made."

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