Chris Kaba BBC Panorama documentary complaint partly upheld by Ofcom

Gang member Chris Kaba was shot dead by police officer Martyn Blake after trying to ram his way past police cars in Streatham, south-east London

Margaret Davis|Matt Watts

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Broadcast regulator Ofcom has upheld part of a complaint by the police watchdog over an episode of Panorama about the fatal shooting of gang member Chris Kaba.

The documentary included claims by former regional director Sal Naseem who suggested that a murder investigation into the police officer who shot Mr Kaba dead was launched amid pressure over potential public disorder.

The Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC), which denied the claim, objected after its statement was not included in the initial broadcast of the programme, and the BBC refused to make a public apology.

Gang member Mr Kaba was shot by police officer Martyn Blake after trying to ram his way past police cars in Streatham, south-east London, in September 2022.

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Mr Blake was cleared in October 2024 after an Old Bailey trial, with questions raised over whether he should ever have faced prosecution, and is waiting to learn whether he will have to face disciplinary proceedings.

In its findings, published on Monday, Ofcom said that the programme makers did not give the IOPC a proper chance to respond to criticisms by former Metropolitan Police Assistant Commissioner Neil Basu, and former armed officer Tony Long.

The IOPC launched a homicide investigation four days after Mr Kaba was shot.

Mr Basu told the programme: “To come out so early in an investigation and announce that they are looking at it as a potential murder investigation, it seems remarkable that that happened so quickly.

“You can’t call it homicide until you’ve gathered all of the evidence, but I think in the early stages of that investigation, they were making a front page news announcement for a purpose.”

Former firearms officer Tony Long, who was himself acquitted of the murder of robbery suspect Azelle Rodney in 2005, said: “My personal feeling is that the IOPC is absolutely obsessed with proving their worth, and I just genuinely think that they will not be happy until they’ve got a successful prosecution”.

The watchdog said it decided to criminally investigate Sergeant Blake, and later refer the case to the Crown Prosecution Service for a charging decision, only after “careful consideration of a significant amount of evidence gathered during our independent investigation and by applying the relevant legal tests which govern our work.”

Ofcom’s report said: “In relation to Mr Naseem’s contribution, Ofcom found that the broadcaster took reasonable care to satisfy itself that material facts were not presented, disregarded or omitted in the programme in a way that resulted in unfairness to the IOPC.

“However, in relation to the criticisms made by Mr Basu and Mr Long, we considered that these comments had the potential to materially or adversely affect viewers’ opinions of the IOPC in a way that was unfair.

“We also considered that the broadcaster was required, given the particular circumstances of this case, to have given the IOPC an appropriate and timely opportunity to respond prior to the programme being broadcast and made available on BBC iPlayer, but that it failed to do so.

“We also considered that the omission of the IOPC’s statement in the programme resulted in unfairness to the IOPC.”

The BBC had argued that Mr Basu and Mr Long’s comments were presented as their personal and professional opinions.

IOPC director-general Rachel Watson said: “We are pleased that Ofcom has upheld two of our complaints in relation to the BBC’s Panorama programme about the fatal shooting of Chris Kaba, broadcast in November 2024.

“It agreed that the IOPC was treated unfairly by the BBC when we were given no right to reply to damaging criticisms made about us within that programme and for not including a statement we provided prior to its broadcast.

“Those criticisms were deeply concerning given they directly questioned our independence and decision-making.

“We felt we had no choice but to escalate our complaints to Ofcom after exhausting the BBC’s complaint procedures.

“While the BBC eventually admitted it had breached its own editorial standards, it refused to make a public apology, despite the IOPC providing evidence to show the serious reputational damage caused to our organisation as a result of the programme.

“While the damage caused by the documentary cannot be undone, we welcome Ofcom’s ruling that the IOPC was treated unfairly and are pleased that the BBC has been held to account.”

A BBC spokesperson said: “We note the findings of this Ofcom ruling, which are broadly in line with the conclusions reached by the BBC’s Executive Complaints Unit in dealing with the IOPC’s initial complaint.

“We are pleased that the complaint relating to Mr Naseem’s contribution was not upheld.

“We took quick action to add the statement made by the IOPC after the criminal trial to the iPlayer version of the programme, and to the online article.

“We always strive to be as fair and thorough as possible when offering and including responses from people and organisations in our programmes.”

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