Investigation into police contact with man before his death - Metropolitan Police Service, September 2020

In September 2020, Metropolitan Police Service (MPS) officers came across a man in the street acting erratically. A Taser was drawn, the man was ‘red dotted’ and subsequently detained under the Mental Health Act and he was taken to hospital. 

While at the hospital and under police guard, the man backed himself out a hospital room window and died. 

Our investigation identified that the MPS also had contact with the man and his family in the days preceding his death. 

Our investigators attended the scene. Over 32 witness statements were taken from police officers and hospital staff. CCTV footage, police officers’ body-worn camera footage was analysed along with radio and telephone transmissions. 

During the investigation, there was no indication any police officer had behaved in a manner that would justify the bringing of disciplinary proceedings or had committed a criminal offence. 

We carefully considered whether there were any learning opportunities arising from the investigation. We make learning recommendations to improve policing and public confidence in the police complaints system and prevent a recurrence of similar incidents. In this case, the investigation has not identified any learning.