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The family of a man shot dead by garda\u00ed have called for a public investigation into his death.<\/p>\nThe family of a man shot dead by garda\u00ed have called for a public investigation into his death.<\/p>\n
George Nkencho, 27, was shot multiple times outside his home in Clonee, west Dublin, on Wednesday, December 30th.<\/p>\n
He was allegedly brandishing a knife and threatened garda\u00ed before he was shot by members of Blanchardstown Garda Armed Support Unit.<\/p>\n
Mr Nkencho was suffering from mental health issues at the time.<\/p>\n
His sister Gloria has raised concerns about the progress of a Garda S\u00edoch\u00e1na Ombudsman Commission (GSOC) investigation into his death, and has called on the Justice Minister to support an independent inquiry.<\/p>\n
Speaking to reporters on Thursday, she said: \u201cThis is an unimaginable pain that I do not wish upon anyone. The death of my brother has caused a vacuum in my home.<\/p>\n
\u201cMy mother has described it as a wound that can never heal. My family are forced to relive our trauma every day when we walk past his room, when we walk down the stairs and see where we stood as he was shot and killed.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe see the bullet holes on the door by our window. This shouldn\u2019t have happened, he didn\u2019t deserve to die. He needed help, not bullets.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe is not here to speak for himself so we must. We need a full, public, independent investigation into his death. We need truth and justice.<\/p>\n
\u201cMy brother is gone and will not be coming back. What we can do is ensure that his death is not in vain, that it never happens to another family again and the most vulnerable people in our society are given the care that they need.\u201d<\/p>\n
Politicians including Solidarity TD Mick Barry, former Dublin West TD Ruth Coppinger and Blanchardstown councillor John Burtchaell wrote to Justice Minister Helen McEntee calling for an independent inquiry on Thursday.<\/p>\n
The letter warned that the \u201cunprecedented and shocking killing has serious implications for the relationship between the community and garda\u00ed.\u201d<\/p>\n
It raised concerns over the fact that a person \u201cwith no criminal convictions and a history of mental ill-health was shot dead so quickly after being engaged by the garda\u00ed\u201d.<\/p>\n
It alleges that the GSOC investigation is \u201cseriously flawed\u201d and does not meet the criteria set out by the European Court of Human Rights that investigations into killings by police forces must be \u201cofficial, independent and thorough\u201d.<\/p>\n
Ms Coppinger said: \u201cIn the six weeks since the shocking death of George, GSOC is failing to meet any of the standards, be they human rights or legal standards, that are required of an investigation into a Garda killing.<\/p>\n
\u201cKey witnesses, including the arms response unit officer believed to have fired the shots, have not been interviewed after six weeks. That\u2019s the information that the family have.<\/p>\n
\u201cVital pieces of evidence, including all the bullet casings from the day, have not been accounted for or secured by GSOC.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe family themselves were not interviewed for 28 days, having been vital witnesses.\u201d<\/p>\n
Gloria Nkencho said that while race may have been a factor in her brother\u2019s death, the issue that should be examined is class.<\/p>\n
She said: \u201cI think the issue we should look at here is class. The different classes of people in society, sometimes there can be a bias from the garda\u00ed, I think that\u2019s the issue we should look at here.<\/p>\n
\u201cOf course race plays a factor, but class is the issue we should look at here.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think a public inquiry would be essential in this situation. It allows proper independence and allows us to see a greater picture of what happened that day.<\/p>\n
\u201cI just want to make it clear that this isn\u2019t a time for divide. I know there\u2019s a small percentage of society that\u2019s trying to turn this into a major race thing.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis isn\u2019t the time for that. We as a community, as a society, should focus on a life that\u2019s taken. We shouldn\u2019t let the small section of society that are trying to turn this into a big race thing, turn it into black against white.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re Irish. We\u2019re here. We\u2019re a community. My brother was taken, a person, a human life.\u201d<\/p>\n
The Nkencho family and GSOC were due to hold a meeting on Thursday afternoon.<\/p>\n
Ms Nkencho said her hope for the meeting is that her family gets some answers.<\/p>\n