IOPC appeals for relatives of man who died in Peckham balcony fall incident

The Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) is appealing to the public in an attempt to identify any relatives of a man who died on 12 April 2023 after falling from a balcony in Peckham, south London, during an incident involving the Metropolitan Police Service (MPS). 

Following the incident, the MPS and the Coroner’s office made extensive efforts to confirm the man’s identity and search for next of kin.

At an inquest opening at Southwark Coroner’s Court earlier this month, the man was formally identified as Zodoq Obatolah, who was aged 52.

IOPC regional director Mel Palmer said: “While it is positive that Mr Obatolah has been identified, we are extremely keen to identify his relatives.

“As part of our efforts so far we have conducted house to house enquiries as well as a witness appeal.

“We want to do everything we can to locate any relatives so that we can speak to them about Mr Obatolah’s death and our ongoing investigation.”

Anyone with information relating to Zodoq Obatolah or his family is urged to contact the IOPC by emailing [email protected] or phoning 03003035592.