Ex-police officer injured in Sheku Bayoh incident speaks out for first time

A former police officer, who was injured while responding to the incident involving Sheku Bayoh a decade ago, has spoken out for the first time.

Mr Bayoh, 31, a father-of-two, died after he was restrained by around six police officers in Kirkcaldy, Fife, on May 3, 2015.

An inquiry into his death in custody, and whether race played a factor, has been paused after chairman Lord Bracadale stood down in October.

Police Federation threatens legal action against Bayoh Inquiry chair. STV News

The chairman had previously been criticised by the Scottish Police Federation after he met privately with the family of Mr Bayoh on at least five occasions.

In a letter to deputy first minister Kate Forbes, Lord Bracadale confirmed he was stepping down after the meetings “gave rise to an appearance of bias”.

Following the resignation, Nicole Short, one of the responding officers, has spoken publicly for the first time since the incident.

‘I begged him not to hurt me’

Ms Short said: “I attended alongside my colleague, and we tried to engage with [Mr Bayoh], but nothing was sinking in, and then one minute you’re trying to engage with him and the next I was running away from him, begging him not to hurt me,” she told reporters.

The former PC, who was allegedly assaulted by Mr Bayoh shortly before other police officers restrained him, spoke alongside SPF chairman David Kennedy.

Ms Short said she was left “permanently disabled” after her encounter with Mr Bayoh and as a result, was unable to return to the force due to her injuries.

She and her colleagues were responding to “reliable evidence from multiple independent witnesses” of a man with a knife, but didn’t see the weapon.

She said: “We were turning up thinking ‘this guy’s got a knife, we need to make the area safe’.

“To do that he needed to be restrained, the situation needed to be taken control of, to be safe.”

She said it was “escalated” due to Mr Bayoh’s “non-compliance”.

She described how she turned to run away from him, but he “just kept coming towards me”, and added: “I felt him punch the back of my head.”

Asked about evidence from three medics which contradicted her own allegations about her injuries, Ms Short said: “I remember watching the evidence and remember how it absolutely tore me apart listening to that. I didn’t have any broken bones.

“I had bruising but the mental scar that it’s left me with has been life-changing.

“But the independent doctor, the inquiry appointed to look at my injuries, added that it was entirely consistent with being stamped on.”

Speaking on the impact the events had on her life, Ms Short said: “There’s a part of me that died that day, and she’s never come back.”

Asked if she feels the police officers involved have been “villainised”, Ms Short agreed that they had been.

“They saved my life that day. I wouldn’t be here if it weren’t for them intervening; they mean the world to me, and I’ll never be able to repay them,” she said.

First Minister to meet family

Following the decision by Lord Bracadale to stand down from the inquiry, First Minister John Swinney said he would be happy to meet with the family of Sheku Bayoh.

However, in an open letter to the First Minister, the Scottish Police Federation’s solicitor stated that it is of “deep concern” that officers involved in the incident have not been invited to a similar meeting.

“Given the gravity of the incident, the public service rendered by these officers, and the ongoing national priority to address knife crime in Scotland, we respectfully request that you extend an invitation to meet with any officers who wish to attend,” it read.

Swinney has since agreed to meet with the officers.

Ms Short said she hopes a new chair is appointed and the inquiry is conducted “on a level playing field” and added that the “race factor being brought into it” had been a cloud over her life.

“We’ve nothing to hide, I’m happy to tell my story of what happened that day, I would like it to continue and one day come to a conclusion,” she said.

The Bayoh family’s lawyer, Aamer Anwar, said: “There is only one person that died that day and it was a 31-year-old unarmed black man, a father of two boys, suffering a mental health crisis due to drugs he took.

“He died as a result of restraint by up to six officers – with half a tonne weight on top of him – those are the facts.”

A Scottish Government spokesperson said: “The First Minister has written to the Scottish Police Federation to confirm he is happy to meet Nicole Short and her colleagues.

“The Scottish Government is committed to the supporting the public inquiry and establishing the relevant facts surrounding Sheku Bayoh’s death. The immediate priority is to appoint a new chair to enable the inquiry to complete its work.”