Rapper Wretch 32 claims killing of Chris Kaba was 'execution'

24 October 2024, 18:01 | Updated: 24 October 2024, 18:21

Rapper Wretch32 has described the killing of Chris Kaba a
Rapper Wretch 32 doesn't think 'justice has been done' following the acquittal of Martyn Blake. Picture: Getty/handout

By Flaminia Luck

Rapper Wretch 32 has described the killing of Chris Kaba as an "execution" - adding he doesn't think "justice has been done".

Listen to this article

Loading audio...

Mr Kaba, 24, was unarmed when firearms officer Martyn Blake shot him through the windscreen of an Audi Q8 as he tried to ram his way past police cars in Lambeth, south London, in 2022.

On Monday, Blake was cleared of his murder.

After the case concluded, it emerged Mr Kaba was a "core member" of one of London's most dangerous criminal gangs and was allegedly directly linked to two shootings in the six days before he was shot dead by police.

On Wednesday, the singer said the Metropolitan Police are "good at villainising" and "turning people against a person".

He added the force utilise this to "execute a person with any repercussions".

Police bodycam shows moment Chris Kaba is shot

The rap artist told Sky News the force talk of "split second moments" but said incidents such as the once involving Kaba would be "detailed operations" where officers are "trained".

"For you to be a trained professional it doesn't allow you to assassinate someone, or execute someone."

"I don't understand how we get to that point."

He added: "Only until there's some form of judicial system are we gonna see justice.

"If the police are policing the police we're never gonna get the results that we want."

In a social media post, Wretch32 also said: "Chris kaba had both hands on the steering wheel & was shot in the head! I call that a execution"

Supporters of Chris Kaba outside the Old Bailey
Supporters of Chris Kaba outside the Old Bailey. Picture: Alamy

The acquittal of Blake sparked protests by some, and Kaba's family said Mr Blake being found not guilty showed "our lives are not valued by the system".

It emerged on Tuesday that Kaba's former gang '67' had put out a £10,000 bounty on Mr Blake after the shooting.

He has now gone into hiding.

Read more: Give armed police more legal protection, says Met chief, as officer cleared of Chris Kaba murder forced into hiding

Read more: Met Police marksman cleared of murdering Chris Kaba forced into hiding after gangsters put £10k bounty on his head

The IOPC is reviewing whether Mr Blake should still face disciplinary proceedings.

Last September, dozens of officers handed in their weapons to protest the decision to charge a colleague with the murder of Kaba.

The army had to be placed on standby as a result.

Between April and December 2023, the Met lost over 250 authorised firearms officers - one in 10 - compared to only 22 in the year leading up to March 2023, according to figures in The Times.

Reading Festival 2018 - Day Two
Wretch32 said the Met are good at 'villainising' people. Picture: Getty

Metropolitan Police Commissioner Sir Mark Rowley said on Monday: "No police officer is above the law, but we have been clear that the system holding police to account is broken.

"I worry about the lack of support officers face for doing their best, but most of all, I worry for the public.

"The more we crush the spirit of good officers, the less they can fight crime that risks London becoming less safe."

Counter-terrorism expert explains 'reasonable' shooting of Chris Kaba

Home Secretary Yvette Cooper announced that the assumption of anonymity would stay in place until they’ve been convicted.

As part of a review into the accountability of armed police officers – which began last year – the Home Office will also now hold a ‘rapid independent review’ into the threshold at which use of force cases against armed officers are sent to the Crown Prosecution Service.

Neil Basu: Chris Kaba case must be seen as 'watershed moment'

'Criminal, wicked minority'

Speaking in the Commons, Conservative MP Sir John Hayes said: "In a righteous echo of St Matthew's Gospel, the elimination of vicious, violent criminal Chris Kaba reminds us that those who live by weapons die by the same.

"But further to yesterday's statement, there are real doubts about the fitness for purpose of the CPS and the IOPC.

"So can we have a debate on whether those organisations have become so infected by a kind of bourgeois, liberal, doubt-fuelled, virtue-signalling that they've lost the will to defend the law-abiding majority from a criminal, wicked minority?"

Commons Leader Lucy Powell pointed to Home Secretary Yvette Cooper's Commons statement on Wednesday in which she revealed a string of reforms, including keeping the identity of firearms officers secret if they are prosecuted unless they are convicted.

Ms Powell added: "Some of those measures will be included in forthcoming legislation from the (Home Office) so I'm sure we'll have ample time to debate them further then."

Ms Cooper vowed to raise the threshold for officers facing court so it matches the measure the CPS uses for making charging decisions about members of the public.

More Latest News

See more More Latest News

Renée Zellweger

Mad about the Box Office: Latest Bridget Jones installment smashes rom com record

Exclusive
David Gauke wants to reduce the size of the female prison estate to make room for more male inmates. File image shows Pentonville prison

Send fewer women to jail to make room for male inmates, says former Justice Secretary

x

Starmer will ensure UK is 'leading country' in European countries stepping up support for Ukraine

Gunner Beck

Women in Army subjected to 'disgusting' comments from male colleagues amid misogynistic culture, inquest hears

The aircraft can be seen upside down, with its wheels in the air, and the area thick with snow

Passenger jet 'flips over' during landing in Toronto leaving 15 injured - with three critical

Paula Miluska had started working from home in November 2022 due to her pregnancy illness

Woman awarded £93k payout after boss fires her for morning sickness by sending jazz hands emoji

c

Britain must take a ‘leading responsibility’ for peace in Ukraine, says PM as he calls for US ‘security guarantee’

Andrew Tate is facing allegations of trafficking of minors, sexual intercourse with a minor and money laundering

Trump team 'pressuring Romania to lift restrictions on Andrew Tate'

Skyrora, a rocket company with its headquarters in Edinburgh

Scottish company promises to blast rockets into space from 2026

A petition calling for major driving licence changes has received almost 100,000 signatures

Petition calls for ban on newly-qualified drivers carrying passengers under 25

The Princess of Wales has shares portraits drawn by her three children during the half-term break.

Princess of Wales shares heartwarming portraits drawn by George, Charlotte and Louis - but who drew who?

Double Olympic champion and Tour de France winner Geraint Thomas will retire from cycling this year.

Tour de France winner and double Olympic champion Geraint Thomas to retire from cycling at end of season

A 13-year-old boy has died and five others have been arrested following  a car crash on A672 Oldham Road.

Boy, 13, dies and five others arrested as Vauxhall Corsa spins off road in horror car crash

Lisa Smith, 43, was named by Kent Police

Pictured: Mother-of-two shot dead at pub on Valentine's Day - as police search river Thames for partner

Julia Wandelt who has claimed to be Madeleine McCann

Woman who claims to be Madeleine McCann releases bombshell new DNA test results

Pope Francis will need to remain in hospital with a respiratory tract infection

Pope to remain in hospital with infection as doctors tackle 'complex clinical picture'