Service to remember Mark Duggan a year after shooting

A service will be held today to mark a year since the death of a man who was shot dead by police before the London riots.

A year and a day after the death of Mark Duggan in Tottenham, north London, members of his family are expected to attend a “service of hope” during what is being billed as a Day of Remembrance “to reflect on the events in the year since the shooting”.

The event at Tottenham Town Hall comes after Mr Duggan's mother, Pam Duggan, made a fresh plea for justice for the family.

Mrs Duggan, whose son was shot in the torso by Metropolitan Police as they swooped on a car he was travelling in, said: “The past 12 months have been terrible.

“We still have no answers about why my son died.

“Thirty-one police officers surrounded Mark and he was shot twice.

“Why?

“Why have none of the police officers given statements, one year on?

“One of the last things my partner, Mark's dad, said before he died a few weeks ago was that he wanted justice for his son.

“We still don't have justice. I won't give up until I get justice for Mark.

“People need to be held to account for my son's death. There needs to be a full inquest, in front of a jury of ordinary men and women, to find out the truth.”

The police watchdog the Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC) is compiling a report that will be passed to a coroner in the autumn.

An inquest into the death of the father of four will take place in January but there is a possibility that some evidence about police operations will need to be heard in secret, which would mean that a special type of public inquiry would need to be held instead.

Mr Duggan died when officers blocked the grey people carrier in Tottenham, north London, on August 4 last year as part of a pre-planned operation, and shot him in the chest.

A non-police issue handgun, converted from a blank-firing pistol to one that shoots live rounds, was recovered close to the scene.

But initial reports that Mr Duggan had fired at officers were dismissed after ballistic tests found that a bullet which lodged itself in one officer's radio was police issue.

London mayor Boris Johnson said of the anniversary: “It's an important time to remember what happened.

“There is a commemoration taking place and I think it will be observed as it should be in a proper and dignified way.”

PA