A Libyan man has been found jointly liable at the High Court for the fatal shooting of PC Yvonne Fletcher, 37 years ago.
PC Fletcher, 25, was killed outside the Libyan Embassy on 17 April 1984 during a protest by anti-Gaddafi activists.
Her former colleague and friend John Murray, 66, brought a civil case against a Libyan man, Saleh Ibrahim Mabrouk, said to be close to the country's ex-leader Colonel Gaddafi.
Mr Mabrouk did not defend the case.
He has been barred from the UK and is currently in Libya, but in an email to Mr Murray's lawyers he denied any involvement in PC Fletcher's killing.
Mr Mabrouk was not alleged to have been the gunman but was found to be jointly liable.
A three-day trial at the Royal Courts of Justice in London heard that Mr Mabrouk was one of the key figures in a "revolutionary committee" that had taken over the Libyan Embassy on Colonel Gaddafi's orders prior to the shooting.
Gaddafi took power in Libya in 1969 but was driving the country in an increasingly radical direction and targeting his enemies abroad, including the UK.
On 17 April, two Sterling sub-machine guns were used to fire on anti-Gaddafi protesters outside the building from a first floor window, killing PC Fletcher and injuring others.
Mr Mabrouk was deported after the shooting but then returned to live in the UK.
In 2015 he was arrested in connection with the killing but in 2017 the case was dropped because crucial evidence could not be used on grounds of national security.
Mr Murray claimed assault and battery related to the shooting and brought a civil claim against Mr Mabrouk for a nominal amount of £1.
In a statement, Mr Murray, from Chingford, east London, spoke of his relief at the the court's ruling, saying it was a "huge weight off [his] shoulders" after a 37-year battle for justice.
But he said despite the "many obstacles" along the way, his promise to his dying colleague to bring those responsible for her murder to justice had "taken a huge step forward".
Mr Murray added: "Everything we have done leading up to this verdict has been for Yvonne.
"Today, we have finally achieved justice for Yvonne."
Delivering his judgement on Tuesday morning, Mr Justice Martin Spencer said that "those responsible for the shooting of Yvonne Fletcher also bore "liability" to Mr Murray.
He said he was "satisfied on the balance of probabilities" that there had been a "common design" to use violence against the protesters and that Mr Mabrouk had been an "active participant" in a "common design" to fire on them.
He added that Mr Murray - who shed a tear as the judgement was read out - had succeeded in showing Mr Mabrouk as jointly liable for the shooting of PC Fletcher.
The judge said PC Fletcher died as a result of "a cowardly attack" by the gunmen, who were "uncaring of the risk posed to police officers going about their normal duties".
There seemed to be "little doubt" that the actions of the gunmen were "orchestrated and sanctioned" by Gaddafi, who "could not tolerate dissent or disagreement", the judge added.
Giving evidence about the day of the shooting, Mr Murray told the court last week that he and PC Fletcher were due to be undertaking other duties that day.
At the last minute they were instead asked to help police a demonstration outside the Libyan Embassy.
Mr Murray - who has suffered post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) since the incident - said he and PC Fletcher had talked to the demonstrators and swapped where they stood a number of times.
Then suddenly he heard what sounded like a firecracker and turned to see his colleague and friend lying bleeding on the pavement.
In an emotional testimony, he said: "I blamed myself. I felt responsible for Yvonne's murder.
"If I had changed places with her once more, it would have been me… she died in my place as far as I was concerned."
John Murray is a special type of man. A Mensch.
John Murray is on the left, holding Yvonne in his arms as she died:
I never served with either, as they were on a different district to me, but we were all part of the same family, and it affected every copper who got posted to police a demonstration thereafter. Yvonne was killed totally at random by a shitbag who got away scot-free with the connivance of H.M. Government (as he was alleged to have been an MI.5 or 6 'asset', hence the "National Security Concern" mentioned above)....until now. The ball is now back in the Government's court and they need to file criminal charges as soon as possible to ensure Mabrouk spends the rest of his (hopefully) short life staring at the four walls of his prison cell.
Posts: 2763 | Location: Lake Country, Minnesota | Registered: September 06, 2019
I was aware of the murder and every time I’ve thought about it have been a little curious why there was never more outrage at the time or since.
Good on Mr. Murray for his continuing efforts.
► 6.4/93.6
“ Enlightenment is man’s emergence from his self-imposed nonage. Nonage is the inability to use one’s own understanding without another’s guidance. This nonage is self-imposed if its cause lies not in lack of understanding but in indecision and lack of courage to use one’s own mind without another’s guidance.” — Immanuel Kant
Posts: 48020 | Location: 10,150 Feet Above Sea Level in Colorado | Registered: April 04, 2002
Originally posted by Mars_Attacks: So, this happened in England and they did nothing?
There was also 'complications' around getting sufficient evidence for a criminal prosecution against the shooter since Moubrak was allegedly an asset being used by M.I.5/6 to gain intel within Qaddafi's regime.
This case was pursued by John Murray through the civil courts where, as you know, the evidential burden is less. Even so, he had to fight the Govt. and other interested parties in order to prevail. The verdict today holds the Govt's feet to the fire now as Moubrak no longer enjoys D.I. and can be prosecuted criminally, using the civil case as a lever.
Posts: 2763 | Location: Lake Country, Minnesota | Registered: September 06, 2019
