The family of a man shot dead by police in Dagenham say they are still waiting for access to key evidence — including the post-mortem report — more than a year after his death.

Giedrius Vasiljevas, 40, was killed by officers at his home on Weston Green, Dagenham, on November 23, 2023. Yet despite the time elapsed, his relatives claim they have not been given access to vital documents, including body-worn camera footage and the investigation report from the police watchdog.

At a hearing on Monday, March 17, a lawyer representing Mr Vasiljevas’s family expressed concern that the delays could force the inquest — currently scheduled for October — to be adjourned.

Maya Sikand KC told the court that “we literally have nothing other than the 100-page medical report,” adding that she was becoming “anxious” about whether the proceedings could go ahead as planned.

Mr Vasiljevas, originally from Lithuania, had previously received treatment from North East London NHS Foundation Trust (NELFT) and was known to drug and alcohol dependency services provided by Change Grow Live.

His family has since filed a misconduct complaint against the Metropolitan Police, though the nature of the allegations has not been disclosed publicly.

Evidence Disclosure Concerns

During Monday’s pre-inquest review at East London Coroner’s Court, Ms Sikand criticised the lack of progress since the last hearing and requested immediate access to a list of used and unused evidence compiled by the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC).

“We need to have those schedules, please, in order for us to have any sense of what there is and what we might need in the future,” she said.
“We still don’t have the post-mortem report… There shouldn’t be any reasons for restrictions on that report — none that I’m aware of.”

She also revealed that while the family had been offered limited viewing of the body-worn footage, they had not been given full access or copies, despite the footage being described as “fundamental” to the case.

Coroner Raises Alarm Over Lack of Disclosure

Senior East London Coroner Graeme Irvine said he was also concerned about the slow pace of evidence sharing.

“I am concerned about the delays in disclosure,” he told the court, describing the currently available evidence as “rather scant in its scope.”

He noted that so far, he had received 14 anonymised police witness statements, two statements from senior officers, transcripts of body-worn footage and police radio messages, a 999 transcript, and computer logs from the night of the shooting.

However, Mr Irvine said he shared the family’s concern about the accuracy of the transcripts, especially after they viewed portions of the footage and raised questions about discrepancies.

Orders for Disclosure Issued

In response to the concerns, the coroner ordered the Metropolitan Police Service to conduct a security review of its evidence lists and disclose them within one week, ensuring no sensitive information such as firearms officers’ identities is exposed. The force was also given 28 days to complete similar checks on all other outstanding documents.

A further pre-inquest review has been scheduled for May 2, where the court will assess whether sufficient progress has been made to keep the October inquest date.

Ruby Shrimpton, representing the Metropolitan Police, told the court:

“One of the priorities we will be considering is getting the material to the family as soon as it is possible to do so.”

The inquest is expected to examine the circumstances surrounding Mr Vasiljevas’s death, including his mental health history, the police response, and whether any failings contributed to the fatal shooting.