Death of Edson Da Costa
Edson Da Costa was a 25-year-old Black British man who died in police custody on 21 June 2017 after being arrested on 15 June on Tollgate Road in Beckton, London. The unclear circumstances of his death have led to protests.[1]
Background
Edir Frederico Da Costa was born in Portugal and had lived in the United Kingdom since 1996.
Arrest and death
At about 10 pm on 15 June, Da Costa and two friends were stopped in their car on Tollgate Road in the Beckton neighbourhood in London. According to Da Costa's father, police suspected that the car had been involved in a robbery. During the stop, Da Costa was detained and was subdued with CS spray. Da Costa apparently had an adverse reaction to the spray, was taken to a hospital and died on 21 June.[1]
Investigation
According to the Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC), police subdued Da Costa with CS gas, which he had a bad reaction to and died. A postmortem examination did not establish a cause of death, but said there was no evidence of excess force being used against Da Costa. However, Da Costa's family and friends have alleged he suffered several serious injuries, including a ruptured bladder, collapsed lungs, and fallen diaphragm and had lost his eyesight from the gas. They have also stated that a witness to the arrest told them that an officer had put his foot on Da Costa's throat after he had fallen to the ground. They believe Da Costa went into cardiac arrest at the scene of the arrest.[1]
The pathologist later stated that a number of packages were found in Da Costa's throat, indicating he had swallowed them shortly before his death. The contents of the packages is still being determined.
Protests
On 25 June, friends and family of Da Costa organised a protest outside of the Forest Gate police station.[1] Later that day, protests turned violent, with protesters throwing bricks that had been ripped from a wall at police and lighting fires near the Stratford bus station.[2] Fourteen police officers were injured during the disturbances and four people were arrested for charges including disorder, arson and criminal damages. Some of the protesters carried signs reading "Black Lives Matter".[3][4]
See also
References
- ^ a b c d Dearden, Lizzie. "Edson Da Costa: Young black father dies after being detained by London police using force". independent.co.uk. The Independent. Retrieved 26 June 2017.
- ^ "Protesters confront Met Police over man's death". bbc.com. BBC. Retrieved 26 June 2017.
- ^ "Forest Gate clashes: Six police officers injured in London amid protests in Stratford over black man's death". telegraph.co.uk. The Telegraph. Retrieved 26 June 2017.
- ^ Brown, Symeon. "Police injured in protests following Edson Da Costa death". channel4.com. Channel4. Retrieved 26 June 2017.
