Armed police officer who shot and killed Chris Kaba will likely never return to active firearms duty despite being exonerated, Met Police union chief says

An armed police officer cleared of murder after shooting dead a violent criminal four years ago will likely never return to firearms duty, the head of the union for Scotland Yard's rank and file has said.

Paula Dodds, chairman of the Metropolitan Police Federation, was speaking to hosts Caroline Cheetham and Ryan Hooper on the latest episode of the Daily Mail's The Trial+ podcast.

Earlier this month the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) confirmed that Sergeant Martyn Blake - known by his cipher NX121 - would not be subject to a disciplinary probe, nearly four years after he shot 24-year-old Chris Kaba in the head.

While it had previously been reported that officer Blake had returned to active service after being exonerated, Ms Dodds revealed on the podcast that he has not returned to firearms duty - and may never do so as a result of his legal ordeal.

She said: 'I haven't spoken to the officer directly. I am aware that he has returned to work. I don't believe he's carrying a firearm, and I don't think he ever will again.'

She added: 'Personally, if I'm reflecting on the situation and I'm the officer, would I be confident going to something similar and having to take a decision in that same way, knowing what I've already gone through, would that taint my decision making?

'Bearing in mind the split seconds I've got to make that decision, and if I'm the senior officer responsible for other officers in the car. I don't know if I could do it, and I think it's a matter for the officer.

'But he's not carrying at the moment. He hasn't been operational for the last four years, or certainly since he's returned to work.'

Ms Dodds also criticised the length of time it has taken to exonerate the police marksman.

She hailed the IOPC's decision not to pursue the misconduct hearing against Officer Blake as 'huge' but said Sergeant Blake should never have faced disciplinary proceedings in the first place - and that doing so had had a cooling effect on firearms officers across the UK.

The shooting occurred after armed police tailed the vehicle Kaba was driving as it had been used as a getaway car in a gang-related shooting the night before in Brixton, south London, in September 2022.

When police boxed in the vehicle in nearby Streatham, Kaba reversed back into a police car before again accelerating, almost dragging the ten officers surrounding him under the wheels before Mr Blake shot him.

The officer was cleared of murder by a jury at the Old Bailey in October 2024, with fellow police marksmen turning in their own weapons after being enraged that he had faced charges.

However, the Met was then directed by the IOPC to hold a misconduct hearing for officer Blake, which had to be paused in January this year pending a review of police use-of-force regulations.

Police misconduct hearings use the civil standard of proof – the balance of probabilities – whereas officer Blake had already been cleared by the higher criminal standard of 'beyond reasonable doubt' in a court of law.

'It makes sense that the misconduct, the gross misconduct, falls away because it's already been dealt with criminally at the highest court,' Ms Dodds said.

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'My question, and this is probably a question we're never going to get answered, is why is it taking two years? Why is it taking two years for that decision to be made when the evidence hasn't changed?'

Officer Martyn Blake faced threats from gangsters, who put a £10,000 bounty on his head following the incident.

Ms Dodds represents 30,000 officers in London, including every constable, sergeant, inspector and chief inspector in the Metropolitan Police.

She says the prosecution and subsequent decision to bring disciplinary proceedings against officer Blake have had a cooling effect on firearms officers in the UK.

'This case hasn't, I think, impacted just the men [in officer Blake's team]. I think it's countrywide. We have very few firearm discharges against members of public. Very few in comparison with other countries,' she said.

'Yes, they should be held to account when a firearm's discharged. But the way in which it was initially handled, this case, and you don't get any extra money for being a firearms officer.

'You don't get any extra reward for carrying a weapon, for going out there putting yourselves in danger, because you know these are the officers that are going out to face the most serious incidents.'

She added: 'No firearm officer turns up every day, takes out their weapons from the armory and think I'm going to discharge today. Not one of them will ever think that because that's not why they do the job.

'Because we're here to protect. When they do, when something so tragic happens, and they discharge their firearm, there should be some protections put in place for these officers.'