BBC blasted for ‘biased’ Chris Kaba doc calling gangster who rammed into police car ‘unarmed’ – as killer cop in hiding
THE BBC has been blasted over its "biased" documentary on a gangster shot dead by a Met marksman during a police stop.
Chris Kaba, 24, was shot in the head through the windscreen of his Audi by Martyn Blake in Streatham, South London in 2022.
Blake was last month cleared of his murder - and has since been forced into hiding with a £10,000 bounty placed on his head.
Harrowing footage showed Kaba ramming into a police car seconds before he was shot dead.
Last night, the BBC released Panorama, The Chris Kaba Shooting. In the documentary, Kaba is repeatedly referred to as "unarmed".
The Metropolitan Police Federation has blasted the BBC documentary for an "utter lack of balance".
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He said: "Police officers will be stunned - but perhaps not surprised - about the utter lack of balance in the BBC Panorama documentary aired last night over the death of Chris Kaba.
"We say again the ramifications of this case remain widespread.
"Police officers should not have their livelihoods, and their liberty, put at risk for performing what unequivocally, in this case, was his lawful and appropriate function.
"The continued use of the word ''unarmed'' when talking about Kaba remains scandalous when we consider how many colleagues have lost their lives because of vehicles.
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"Cars are - in the hands of dangerous criminals - very much weapons."
The documentary also features an interview with Kaba's grieving parents, Helen and Prosper.
They said cops should have arrested their son rather than shooting him dead.
Bodycam footage shown at Blake's trial showed Kaba reversing into one car before trying to ram his way past a police vehicle.
There is a screeching sound of wheel-spinning and the Audi engine revving, before the sound of a gunshot is heard.
Kaba did not have a gun and had his hands on the steering wheel - but Blake feared he would use his Audi to ram officers.
Blake remains in hiding after a jury cleared him of gang member Kaba's murder last month.
In the documentary, Kaba's dad Prosper said he felt no reason to keep living life after his son's death.
Prosper said: "People have to lose their parents. This is life - you are born, you have your parents, they die.
"You can understand it, you can explain. But a parent who loses a son, especially at that age... for me, life doesn't have any meaning."
Former IOPC police watchdog director Sal Naseem said the Met had grilled him after he confirmed no guns had been found in Kaba's car.
He told the documentary: "A forensic examination had been done. We were satisfied that no non-police firearms had been recovered.
"I remember having an exchange with a senior officer from the Met.
"They were questioning, 'Are you certain that the vehicle has been sweeped thoroughly enough?'
"They were pressing me, ''Are you sure? Are you sure there's not a firearm here?'
"Yes, we were sure. It betrayed a strong desire that something was found.
"Then, the scenario becomes 'This was an armed man'', and the picture it paints is different to the scenario where he was unarmed."
Police officers will be stunned - but perhaps not surprised - about the utter lack of balance in the BBC Panorama documentary aired last night over the death of Chris Kaba
A BBC spokesperson said: "This investigation is in the public interest.
'All of our programmes are produced in accordance with the BBC's editorial guidelines.
"This includes a commitment to impartiality and hearing a range of perspectives.
"We encourage people to watch the documentary in full and to make up their own minds."
Met firearms officer Blake, 40, was unanimously acquitted of murder by an Old Bailey jury last month.
The prosecution suggested Blake may have been “angry, frustrated and annoyed” because Kaba refused to comply with police.
But Blake told jurors he fired as he feared a colleague would be killed.
The jury deliberated for three hours before clearing Mr Blake.
After the trial, Mr Justice Goss lifted an order banning reporting on Kaba's past.
Kaba was a feared "core member" of a notorious gang and was involved in a nightclub shooting just days before he was shot.
The 24-year-old drill rapper had served prison sentences for firearms offences and possessing weapons.
And Kaba – nicknamed ‘Mad Itch’ - was a leading member of the ‘67’ gang based in Brixton, South London.
When he was shot dead by Met Police firearms officer Martyn Blake, Kaba was facing the prospect of a long prison sentence, according to the officer's barrister.
In the week leading up to his death on the night of 5 September 2022, Kaba was linked to two shootings.
Kaba was caught on CCTV shooting a gang rival at a packed nightclub in Hackney, East London.
'Strong evidence'
The Old Bailey heard during legal argument there was “strong evidence” Kaba was one of a gang who carried out a shotgun attack in Brixton the night before his death.
Sgt Blake’s defence counsel argued the shootings explained why Kaba tried to ram his way out of a police trap in Streatham before he died.
Patrick Gibbs KC suggested that had Kaba lived, “he would have been tried for attempted murder in this court over many weeks.”
But jurors trying 40-year-old Sgt Blake for murder, were barred from knowing about Kaba’s life of crime.
Mr Justice Goss ruled Kaba’s background and the shootings before his death, offered no “important explanatory evidence” to the case.
Blake had been briefed about the Brixton shooting before going out on patrol but had no knowledge of Kaba when he killed him.
Kaba had convictions dating back to the age of 13.
He was found guilty for his part in a vicious nine-man fight in 2014 during which he was shot.
And he was sentenced to four years imprisonment in 2017 for possessing an imitation firearm with intent to cause fear of violence.
Kaba was jailed for five months in 2020 for possessing a knife - and failing to stop for police.
The dad-to-be was also handed a 28-day domestic violence order in April 2022 preventing him contacting the mother of his unborn child.
It emerged during legal submissions that Kaba had previously been subject to an interim gang order.
He was due to face an application for a permanent order which was due to take place 10 days after his death.
It was also revealed in legal argument how Kaba had gunshot residue on his sleeve when he was shot dead by Blake.
The only evidence the jury heard about Kaba’s character was from a friend who knew him for two years and claimed he was a “calm” person.
It contrasted to evidence from an earlier three-month Old Bailey trial this year which heard how Kaba brutally shot a rival in a drug feud.
CCTV showed Kaba shooting rival gang member Brandon Malutshi at the packed Oval Space nightclub in Hackney, East London.
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Kaba then ran after his target into the street and continued firing, hitting him in the leg.
Jurors in that earlier trial were told the shooting was part of a County Lines feud between Kaba’s 67 gang and the rival 17 gang, which Malutshi was associated with.
Public and jurors deserved to know Kaba's violent history - why was it hidden?
By Mike Sullivan, Crime Editor
AT long last the public are now aware of the full facts surrounding the fatal shooting of Chris Kaba by Met firearms officer Martyn Blake.
Mr Justice Goss delayed his decision to lift reporting restrictions about Kaba’s appalling background until this morning.
By keeping the public in the dark about Kaba, in my opinion the judge risked provoking public disorder.
A peaceful protest of around 125 of Kaba’s supporters took place at the Old Bailey on Monday night.
Back in August 2011 another demo outside Tottenham police station over the police shooting of Mark Duggan, led to nationwide riots.
I felt sorry for the callers to radio talk shows expressing their anger over the shooting of Chris Kaba in the wake of Sgt Blake’s acquittal.
They were not armed with the full picture.
Kaba did not deserve to die and his death is a tragedy for his loved ones and for everyone involved in the case.
But neither was he just the loving father-to-be and construction worker which he was portrayed as.
The jury deserved to know he was a gangster with a history of crime and linked to two shootings in the week before his death.
It provided a potential explanation over why Kaba tried so desperately hard to ram his way free of the police trap.
Likewise, the public also had a right to know the full facts as soon as criminal proceedings ended.
The delay by the judge created a false impression of a case which has touched a raw nerve in our communities.
It also created an unnecessary risk of disorder on our streets.
