Training for officers ‘has to change' after choking death of young father, coroner warns Met

Edir Da Costa, 25, also known as Edson, died six days after he was stopped by plainclothes police in Beckton in June 2017
Ben Morgan30 August 2019
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Scotland Yard has been told to overhaul its training guidelines for restraining suspects after the death of a young father.

Senior coroner Nadia Persaud has written to Met Commissioner Cressida Dick outlining a raft of measures for how officers deal with suspects concealing evidence in their mouths.

They include front-line officers having greater awareness of choking risks, new guidelines on CS gas use and better information-sharing with paramedics.

It follows the inquest into the death of Edir Da Costa, 25, also known as Edson, who died six days after he was stopped by plainclothes police in Beckton in June 2017. Da Costa had placed a plastic bag containing wraps of crack cocaine and heroin in his mouth moments before he was restrained with CS gas and handcuffs.

Ms Persaud, who heard the case at Walthamstow coroner’s court, made the recommendations in a prevention of future deaths report. She wrote: “The inquest heard that it is well documented that members of the public may swallow plastic bags to evade arrest or conceal evidence. Placing plastic bags in the mouth raises a very high risk of choking. Police officers should be aware of these risks.”

Other measures include the use of a specially trained safety officer during street arrests and better training to spot warning signs of a suspect choking. Police must also limit noise levels in their Newham communication HQ after it led to communication errors with the London Ambulance Service.

Mr Da Costa, of Hackney, was born in Portugal and lived in London from the age four, and had a young son. In June an inquest jury returned a verdict of death by misadventure. At the time, Mr Da Costa’s father Ginario Da Costa said: “We cannot help but wonder whether Edir would still be here had the police identified the risk of Edir choking earlier and taken steps to help him.”

A Scotland Yard spokeswoman said: “We have received the coroner’s prevention of future deaths report... it is being carefully assessed. The MPS will always fully engage in the coronial process. We will be making a full response to the coroner’s report in the very near future.

“The death of anyone after involvement with police is of course a matter of regret and we welcome the range of independent processes that exist to provide full scrutiny of the facts.”

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