The shooting of Jean Charles de Menezes by London police firearms officers was caused by "fundamental failures" in planning, a court heard today.
A jury at the Old Bailey in London heard how the 27-year-old Brazilian, who had been mistaken for a suicide bomber, was gunned down by two police officers as he boarded a Tube train at Stockwell station.
London's Metropolitan Police are on trial over alleged health and safety failures leading up to his death on July 22nd, 2005, which they deny.
(L-R) Cousin Alessandro Pereira, cousin Vivian Figueiredo, and family friend Elora Ronaldo da Silva outside the Old Bailey, London today.
Clare Montgomery QC, prosecuting, said the "disaster" of the innocent Brazilian electrician's death was "not the result of a fast-moving operation going suddenly and unpredictably awry". "It was the result of fundamental failures to carry out a planned operation in a safe and reasonable way," she said.
The court heard that police were watching the block of flats at Scotia Road in south London where Mr de Menezes lived when he left for work.
"Some of the officers watching him thought he might be a suspected suicide bomber who lived in the same block, others did not," said Ms Montgomery.
Despite the surveillance being launched more than four hours earlier, a firearms team had not arrived by the time Mr de Menezes left, Ms Montgomery said. They were two miles away having stopped for petrol, she added.
The suspect was followed on to two buses and then into Stockwell Tube station where CCTV pictures played to the jury showed him being followed by surveillance officers.
These officers asked their superiors more than once if they should arrest Mr de Menezes but were told to wait, Miss Montgomery said.
They did not know that the order had been given to "stop" him to prevent him boarding the Tube.
CCTV images showed armed officers, who did not know whether Mr de Menezes was the suspect, brandishing their weapons as they made their way down to the platform.
As they boarded the Tube carriage, they were recognised by surveillance officers as armed colleagues. One of them pointed out Mr Menezes by saying: "Here he is."
"As the armed police entered the carriage, Jean Charles stood up," said Miss Montgomery.
"He was grabbed by a surveillance officer and pushed back into his seat. Two firearms officers leant over him and placed their Glock 9mm pistols against Jean Charles' head and fired.
"He was shot seven times in the head and died immediately."
"He was not involved in terrorism in any way," Ms Montgomery added.
She said the allegation against police was that they carried out the investigation and pursuit of a suspected suicide bomber "in such a way that the public were exposed to the possibility of danger".
Ms Montgomery added: "We say that the police planned and carried out an operation that day so badly that the public were needlessly put at risk, and Jean Charles de Menezes was actually killed as a result."
The trial continues.