Jean Charles de Menezes' cousin shares fury as police officer who shot him speaks for first time

Nineteen years ago, Met Police mistook guiltless Jean Charles de Menezes for a violent and changeable him dormant successful beforehand of horrified commuters astatine Stockwell conduit station

The constabulary marksman who changeable dormant Jean Charles de Menezes aft wrongly suspecting him of being a terrorist has sparked outrage from his cousin, aft the firearms serviceman spoke publically for the archetypal time.

Reacting to the policeman’s publication to a caller Channel 4 documentary, Katia da Silva, 44, tells The Mirror : "He doesn’t regret anything. Why has helium decided to speech astir this aft 20 years?”

She was peculiarly upset by his statement of the infinitesimal helium changeable Mr de Menezes, 27, astatine adjacent scope successful London’s Stockwell presumption connected 22 July 2005 - soon aft the July 7 London panic onslaught - and however erstwhile helium aboriginal showered, helium was inactive removing tiny pieces of his skull from his hair.

Accusing him of “bragging astir the brutality with which helium took Jean’s life,” she adds: “He should ne'er person been successful the Met police.”

Ms da Silva besides finds it hard to judge that the policeman was shown a grainy faxed photograph of the panic fishy they were looking for, and had conscionable 10 seconds to memorise his face.

She says: “Operation Kratos was a high-level cognition developed to halt terrorism. Would they truly marque specified a basal error? No-one could memorise someone’s look successful conscionable seconds.”

She questions the officer’s allegation that Mr De Menezes acted suspiciously by getting disconnected the autobus astatine Brixton presumption and instantly getting backmost on, which helium said was interpreted arsenic an “anti-surveillance move”.

She says: “Brixton presumption was closed due to the fact that of the violent attacks immoderate days earlier, that’s wherefore helium got backmost on. He was an electrician and was successful a hurry to get to his client.”

Refuting the marksman’s claims that Mr de Menezes precocious towards him arsenic helium pointed his revolver astatine his caput connected the Tube train, she adds: “On the train, everybody got up to get retired arsenic soon arsenic the equipped officers ran on, not conscionable Jean. He would ne'er person precocious astatine him, determination was nary carnal contact. Jean was conscionable a mediocre electrician with dreams of making a beingness for himself successful London. It’s each lies. Hearing these things is hurtful for his family.”

On the policeman saying helium doesn’t privation to conscionable de Menezes’ family, she adds: “He’s ne'er going to beryllium a antheral to look successful the eyes of my aunt, Jean’s mother. He’s not going to person the courageousness to bash that. He took distant her son.”

Another relative of the electrician, Alex Pereira, said helium has nary sympathy for the policeman, adding: “Saying atrocious aft what helium did it is precise easy. But what prevailed astatine the infinitesimal helium did it was prejudice and racism, that’s what truly caused Jean’s death.

“If the antheral who had died had been Muslim oregon Arab they would person done everything to effort to beryllium that helium was guilty. But their atrocious luck was that Jean was conscionable a mediocre elemental feline from the interior of Brazil, they had to reason that helium was innocent.

“Because of him we’ll ne'er get Jean back.”

• The Channel 4 documentary Shoot to Kill: Terror connected the Tube, volition beryllium shown connected November 10 and 11 connected Channel 4.