The gun-obsessed man who shot dead Sergeant Matt Ratana while handcuffed inside a police station custody cell has been sentenced to a whole life prison term for the murder.
Louis De Zoysa, 25, fired the antique pistol at 54-year-old custody sergeant Ratana as he was preparing to search him in the course of an arrest.
Metropolitan Police officers who first detained De Zoysa in the street found ammunition and cannabis, but failed to spot the gun loaded with six bullets which was tucked under his arm.
In the custody suite at Croydon, Sergeant Ratana, a New Zealand native, was struck in the chest by one of the shots, fired by De Zoysa despite him being handcuffed with his arms behind his back at the time.
At Northampton crown court on Thursday, Mr Justice Johnson condemned De Zoysa to die in prison as he imposed a whole life prison term - an exceptional sentence reserved for the most serious crimes including the murder of a police officer in the execution of his duty.
“You acted in cold blood”, said the judge. “Your act was controlled, it was deliberate.
“You intended to kill Sgt Ratana, you deliberately aimed the gun at his chest at near point-blank range.
“Even as he fell, you aimed and fired a second shot at him.”
The judge said De Zoysa had lied to officers during his original arrest, telling them the bullets that had been found were fakes and insisting he did not have anything on him that could cause harm.
Paying tribute to Sgt Ratana, the judge said his family was “rightly immensely proud” of a dedicated police officer: “He devoted his life to public service, he put himself in the way of danger to protect the public and to protect and safeguard those who came into custody.”
Sgt Ratana’s partner Su Bushby delivered an emotional impact statement in court, reliving the shocking moment she was told he had been shot dead.
“I remember falling to the floor, screaming and crying uncontrollably”, she said.
Ms Bushby said she was denied the chance to hold Sgt Ratana one last time at the hospital “because of the horrific circumstances surrounding his death – I kept kissing his forehead, tears streaming down my face, and telling him to wake up.
“I could now see for myself this was true, my pain was indescribable, seeing Matt was dead and he had been killed.”
Ms Bushby said she saw De Zoysa for the first time in November last year: “It was extremely difficult to face him”, she said.
“I remember thinking how unfair it was – here was the man who had ended Matt’s life. The man who shot him gets to remain on this earth and Matt doesn’t.”
She added: “At this moment, the nightmare continues. At this moment in time, I can’t forgive him for what he has done – the person who shot Matt and ripped my life apart.”
Sgt Ratana’s family described the shooting as “senseless”, “cowardly” and “cruel”, and his estranged son Luke, a fellow police officer, told the court he feels robbed of the chance to make amends with his father.
“You have taken that opportunity away from me”, he said to De Zoysa.
He was among several members of Sgt Ratana’s family who praised the officers who were present on the day of the shooting.
“They will carry an unwarranted sense of guilt with them”, he said. “They did nothing wrong that night.”
De Zoysa fought the murder charge at trial, arguing the shooting was not deliberate and instead the result of an “autistic meltdown”, but he was convicted by a jury.
A former engineering student at UCL who went on to become an HMRC data analyst, De Zoysa had become obsessed with guns prior to the murder of Sgt Ratana on September 25, 2020.
After the shooting, police found a shortened infantry rifle, numerous types of ammunition, a pipe gun, and a dummy launcher at his rented property. Sgt Ratana was struck in the chest by one of three shots fired by De Zoysa as he moved in to carry out a further search, while the killer fired a fourth shot into his own neck during the ensuing struggle with officers.
De Zoysa suffered a stroke causing brain damage, and coupled with his autism led to a significantly altered court process to enable a trial to take place.
The case was shifted from the Old Bailey to Northampton to be closer to the secure hospital where De Zoysa is receiving treatment, he used a whiteboard and marker pen to communicate at times, and a simplified list of questions was drawn up so that he could give his evidence.
De Zoysa had bought the gun online – legally due to its antique status – he drilled down bullets to fit in the chamber.
He was stopped by police in London Road, Norbury, south London, in the early hours of September 25, 2020, when drugs and ammunition were found and he was taken into custody.
When he reached the custody centre in Croydon, De Zoysa was handcuffed and CCTV footage showed Sgt Ratana telling him he was about to be searched as part of the booking-in process.
Shocking footage – released by the Met Police – shows De Zoysa suddenly stretching his arms around his body, moments before the shooting.
Officers wrestled him to the ground once the shots had been fired, and Sgt Ratana was rushed to hospital.
“Louis De Zoysa pulled the trigger on purpose twice when he was pointing the gun at Sgt Ratana”, said prosecutor Duncan Penny KC.
“The police officers did not find that Louis De Zoysa was carrying a loaded revolver in a holster.
“The gun and holster were probably concealed under one of his armpits.”
Describing the incident in the holding cell, the prosecutor said: “Louis De Zoysa was still handcuffed. He was able to point the gun at Sergeant Ratana. He deliberately shot Sergeant Ratana once to the chest, at very close range. He did not give a warning.”
During the trial, it was revealed De Zoysa had suffered violence at home from his father and he had taken to smoking cannabis in his youth.
In mitigation, De Zoysa’s lawyer Imran Khan KC said the killer is a “troubled man” whose upbringing and medical difficulties had contributed to the murder.
“He is not an evil man, not a wicked man, he is not a monster”, he said.
