A PUBLIC inquiry into the circumstances surrounding the death of Sheku Bayoh will begin on Monday, Justice Secretary Humza Yousaf has announced.
The 31-year-old trainee gas engineer from Sierra Leone was restrained by up to nine police officers using CS spray, pepper spray and batons in Kirkcaldy in May 2015.
Officers later said they had responded to calls about a “large black man” waving a knife, shouting at cars and behaving erratically.
Mr Bayoh, who had taken the drugs MDMA and Flakka, suffered 23 separate injuries.
The Crown Office decided not to prosecute any of the officers involved.
Lord Bracadale, a retired senator of the College of Justice, will now lead a statutory inquiry into Mr Bayoh's death.
Mr Yousaf has also appointed Michael Fuller, a former chief constable of Kent Police and Chief Inspector of the Crown Prosecution Service, and experienced lawyer Raju Bhatt as assessors to support Lord Bracadale with their knowledge and experience in their individual areas of expertise, as well as on race and diversity issues during the preparation, oral hearings, decision making and report writing phases.
Mr Yousaf said: “The family of Mr Bayoh have shown remarkable dignity and perseverance during their five-year wait for an inquiry into the death of Sheku.
"I hope that today’s announcement gives them comfort and reassurance that the circumstances surrounding his death will be examined in a public and transparent manner.
“Lord Bracadale and I worked closely together in selecting the assessors and we agreed that Mr Fuller and Mr Bhatt would provide extensive levels of experience and expertise to the Inquiry.
"The formal start of the Inquiry is a key milestone and I am confident the assessors will ably assist the chair to consider issues relevant to the Terms of Reference.
"The Inquiry will examine the circumstances leading up to the death of My Bayoh, the post incident management process and subsequent investigation.
"The inquiry will also establish the extent to which Mr Bayoh’s actual or perceived race played a part in events, if any.”
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