A man has died after he was tasered by a Metropolitan Police officer and fell several stories from a balcony in southeast London.
The “tragic death” is being investigated by the Independent Office for Police Conduct.
Officers were called to a residential property in Peckham after a man threatened to jump from a balcony just before 1.30am on Wednesday, April 12.
During the course of more than an hour, officers attempted to persuade the man to come inside from the balcony.
The man was then tasered by an officer on the balcony and he fell several floors to the ground, the IOPC said in a statement.
He was taken to hospital with life-threatening injuries and died later that day.
A mandatory referral was made to the IOPC and it has launched an independent investigation. Footage from body cameras is being reviewed, the Met said.
Detective Chief Superintendent Seb Adjei-Addoh, in charge of policing for Lambeth and Southwark, said: “I know the community will be concerned about this tragic death and I share their concern.
“All police officers know that their actions will be scrutinised in situations such as these, and the Met is fully supporting the independent investigation by the IOPC.”
Enquiries are underway to identify the man’s next of kin. Formal identification and a post-mortem examination will be arranged in due course, the Met said.
An IOPC spokesperson said: “We have begun an independent investigation into an incident involving Metropolitan Police Service (MPS) officers on Wednesday (April 12) in southeast London, where a man was seriously injured and later died in hospital after falling from a balcony.
“We were advised that MPS officers attended an address in Peckham at around 2am following a report of a man threatening to jump from a balcony on a residential building.
“We have established that officers were present for over an hour and attempted to persuade the man to come inside from the balcony. The man has then been tasered while on the balcony and he has fallen several floors to the ground.
“The man was transported to hospital with life-threatening injuries and died later the same day.
“We received a mandatory referral from the force and declared an independent investigation the next day. Our investigation is in its initial stages and we have secured officers’ body worn footage as we begin gathering evidence.”
