Update on investigation into death of Lamont Roper

The Independent Office for Police Complaints (IOPC) has concluded its investigation into the circumstances surrounding the death of a man in the River Lea in Tottenham following a pursuit by Metropolitan Police Service (MPS) officers.

Three MPS officers were patrolling on bicycles along the towpath between Ferry Lane and Markfield Park, N15, at around 9.15pm on 7 October last year (2020) when they approached a group of males on bikes and electric scooters to carry out a stop search.

Our enquiries established that one of the males was detained by police and two others came to be in the water at different points along the towpath after they were pursued. One of them was pulled from the water and detained but the other, 23-year-old Lamont Roper, could not be found. His body was recovered from the waterway the following morning.

Our investigation, following a referral from the force, was completed in April this year and focused on the police contact with Mr Roper before his death including the pursuit, a struggle that took place between him and an officer, how he came to be in the water, and subsequent efforts to find him. We also looked at the decision by police to approach the group on the towpath.

During our inquiries, one officer was served with a misconduct notice advising them that they were under investigation for potential breaches of professional standards for duties and responsibilities over their use of body worn video, and whether that was activated in accordance with policy.

Following completion of our investigation we shared our report with Mr Roper’s family, the MPS and the Coroner to assist with the forthcoming inquest, currently scheduled for 22 November this year. We will publish our findings once those proceedings have concluded