Metropolitan Police criticised after man jumped to his death in station

The Metropolitan Police has been warned pursuing the decease of a antheral who jumped disconnected a telephone booth wrong a constabulary station, having spent 18 hours successful the waiting area.

He suffered devastating injuries and died soon after.

In my opinion, enactment should beryllium taken to forestall aboriginal deaths and I judge that you person the powerfulness to instrumentality specified action

Mary Hassell, elder coroner for Inner North London

Before the incidental occurred, Mr Jones had written a termination note, and had been rocking backwards and forwards and talking to himself, but nary of his behaviour was spotted by officers, an inquest into his decease heard.

His actions were captured connected CCTV.

“We reason that if those actions had been seen, it is much apt than not that constabulary would person taken enactment and would person prevented his suicide,” jurors astatine the inquest determined.

Several constabulary witnesses besides told the inquest that if they had seen this behaviour they would person intervened.

Jurors highlighted the mediocre positioning of CCTV monitors successful the station’s rear office, and a deficiency of constabulary unit stationed successful “the box” – the country that faces retired to the nationalist reception.

“During his clip astatine Stoke Newington constabulary station, the CCTV shows that Mr Jones displayed capable behaviours to bespeak that helium was an contiguous information to himself which, if seen by constabulary staff, would person resulted successful enactment that astir apt would person prevented his death,” the verdict read.

Senior coroner for Inner North London, Mary Hassell, has sent a prevention of aboriginal deaths study to the Met, informing that aboriginal deaths volition hap unless enactment is taken.

Mr Jones spent immoderate 18 hours successful the nationalist waiting country of the presumption earlier deciding to leap from the booth successful November 2022.

Jurors determined that helium died by suicide.

An inquest earlier this period heard the telephone booths astatine the presumption person present been replaced, but jurors ruled determination had been a “failure” to support “sufficient oversight of the nationalist reception area” by the Met.

“I heard that each constabulary presumption has a antithetic geographical layout, and that immoderate of these are aged buildings,” Ms Hassell said.

“However, a elder constabulary serviceman giving grounds did judge that presumption officers could beryllium positioned… facing retired towards the nationalist area, alternatively than further into the bureau facing each other.

“The assemblage noted that without the beingness of a level topped telephone hood, determination would person been nary means for Mr Jones to instrumentality his beingness successful this manner.”

There are nary level topped telephone booths successful immoderate different of the Met’s stations, the coroner said.

“In my opinion, enactment should beryllium taken to forestall aboriginal deaths and I judge that you person the powerfulness to instrumentality specified action,” she told the force.

Scotland Yard volition person 56 days to respond.

In 2022, erstwhile serviceman Bradley Francis was jailed for stealing £1,500 from a harmless astatine the constabulary station.