Huddersfield shooting: Father of man shot by police on M62 likens death to Mark Duggan's

Police shooting: Yassar Yaqub was shot dead by police near Huddersfield
Patrick Grafton-Green5 January 2017
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The father of Yassar Yaqub, who was shot by police officers on the M62, has likened his son’s death to that of Mark Duggan, suggesting it was racially motivated.

Yaqub, an alleged drug dealer who called himself ‘Stud Badboy’ online, died during a “pre-planned” operation near Huddersfield on Monday, after a tip-off he was carrying a gun.

The 28-year-old father-of-two was shot three times through the windscreen of his Audi after being surrounded by West Yorkshire Police officers on junction 24.

The Independent Police Complaints Commission has confirmed a ‘non-police issue’ firearm was found in his car.

Friends have since claimed Yaqub was a drug dealer who laundered money, drove luxury cars and was feared on the street.

He was cleared of attempted murder in 2010 after being arrested over a drive-by attack.

Yaqub was an alleged drug dealer with a love for luxury cars

His heartbroken parents attended a vigil at the side of the motorway on Wednesday night attended by more than 100 mourners.

And his father Mohammed Yaqub said there were similarities between his son’s shooting and that of Mark Duggan in how the official accounts of Duggan's death changed.

He told MailOnline: “I am well aware of what happened with Mark Duggan and because of what was revealed first, and what the outcome was of that, it has worried me a lot.

“Look how many protests they had to take to get answers.”

Duggan, 29, was shot dead by armed Metropolitan Police officers in Tottenham in August 2011, sparking riots in London and other English cities.

Mr Yaqub has pledged to fund a private prosecution to bring the shooter to justice, and added: “He was driving down, he was cornered. Bearing in mind it was dark, how could you have seen what he was doing?

“My lad didn't deserve this — I thought this is something that happens in America but not here.”

Several ‘Justice for Yassar’ pages have appeared online while campaigners reacted with fury after it emerged the armed officers in the operation were not wearing body cameras.

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