Nicholas Brandram family statement: police blamed for his death

 

@Nicholas Brandram's family

Nicholas Brandram's family has issued a statement regarding his death.  They insist that Nicholas took his own life after the Metropolitan Police failed to clear his name.   

The Brandram family claims that Nicholas committed suicide "after months of immense pressure caused by a Metropolitan Police investigation."  They accused the police of causing "shame, anxiety, humiliation, and extraordinary pressure" with a "wholly unnecessary investigation," noting every indication the investigation would end with no further action."

"The Met Police knew he was not [the Putney Pusher.  And yet, when Nick died, they had still"shame, anxiety, humiliation, and extraordinary pressure" failed to formally clear his name. That is a source of profound grief and anger for our family.

"There was no forensic evidence linking Nick to it, no evidence placing him on Putney Bridge at the time, and no credible evidence that he was the man shown in the footage.  In fact, evidence proved the opposite.

"Despite that, the police chose to arrest Nick rather than invite him to attend for an interview."

Nicholas's family noted that his lawyers "did the basic investigative work that should have been done by the Met Police."

"They pointed out that the published images of a man involved in the assault bore no resemblance t Nick: the victim had described the attacker as having brown eyes.  Nick had distinctive blue eyes. Nick had a visibly wasted and disfigured calf dating back to his time serving in the Army, while the man in the footage did not. And Nick had a prominent forearm tattoo, which was not visible on the man in the images.

"Nick made it clear that he was keen to take part in an identification parade, but the police never organized one.  He also provided email evidence sent from his office in the West End, demonstrating that he was not even on the Putney Bridge when the assault happened.  A previous suspect, also wrongly arrested, was cleared within days of providing an alibi; Nick was left on bail and remained under suspicion.

"This was not evidence that emerged months later; it was provided to the police within days of Nick’s arrest.

"The Met Police had that evidence before them and gave every indication that the investigation would end with no further action. 

 "But it did not end. A DNA sample was recovered at the time of the assault; Nick provided his DNA for comparison three months ago but, to this day, the police have still not finalised the DNA analysis or provided any explanation for the delay, even though they know Nick is innocent from all the other evidence.

"The double standard is impossible to ignore.  When the Met Police wanted to arrest Nick, there was urgency; when they wanted to search his home, there was urgency; when information about him reached the press, there was urgency. But when the evidence showed they had the wrong man, that urgency disappeared.

"We cannot claim to know everything that was in Nick’s mind when he died, but we know what this investigation did to him.

"We saw the strain, the humiliation, and the pressure he was living under; and the Met Police cannot say that they did not know - they had been warned, repeatedly and explicitly, about the damage being done to Nick.

"It is clear that the Met Police’s handling of this case materially contributed to the unbearable situation in which Nick found himself, and to his death.

"Nick was a proud veteran, a father, a son, a brother, an uncle, a friend, and a colleague. Since his arrest, and since his death, we have received message after message from people whose lives he touched.

"They speak of his kindness, his loyalty, his humour and the enormous affection people had for him, and that he had for others.

"We understand that policing is difficult, and we understand that investigations sometimes produce mistakes. But the power to arrest somebody, search their home, associate their name with a notorious crime, and expose them to public suspicion is an enormous one. It must be exercised with care, evidence, and basic humanity.

"And when the police discover that they have accused the wrong person, clearing that person’s name should be an urgent responsibility."

"The Met Police were quick to expose Nick to suspicion and painfully slow to remove it. They failed him. And Nick’s family will now live with the consequences of that failure for the rest of our lives.

"Those who knew Nick will remember him for everything that made him the wonderful man he was. We will love him, and miss him, every day.

"But grief does not remove the need for accountability. We will continue to demand answers about how an innocent man was put through this, why he was not cleared when the evidence showed he should have been, and what the Met Police will do to ensure that no other family has to endure what ours now must."

The family also spoke about how Nicholas' mental health was affected by the investigation.  The police were asked to end the investigation 

"Even then, the investigation was not brought to an end. As a result, Nick is dead."

The Brandram family has sent the following questions to the Met for answers:

"Why was Nick arrested when the police had no credible evidence placing him at the scene?

"What investigative work was carried out before the decision was taken to arrest him?

"Why were reporters present when police arrived at his home, and who told them that the arrest was taking place?

"What information about Nick was provided to the media, by whom, and on what authority?

"Once the Met Police accepted the evidence proving that Nick was not the man shown in the footage and was not at Putney Bridge, why was his name not cleared immediately?

"Why, three months after taking Nick’s DNA, has the Met Police still not provided the result of the comparison?

"What is the Met Police now going to do about the fact that the real Putney Pusher remains at large and a continuing threat to society?

"And, most importantly, does the Met Police accept that leaving an innocent man under the shadow of this allegation for months led to his death?"

Due to the questions raised by the Brandram family, the Met Police has referred the case to the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IPO), which has responded:  "We have received a mandatory referral from the Met Police relating to prior contact officers had with Nicholas Brandram, who was sadly found unresponsive and declared deceased on 15 September.

"We are currently assessing the referral before deciding whether further action is required from us.”