Murder of Matt Ratana

Matiu "Matt" Ratana (3 May 1966 – 25 September 2020) was a New Zealand-born British police sergeant of Māori descent who had served with the Metropolitan Police for nearly 30 years, having moved to England in 1989. He also had a period of service with New Zealand Police from 2003, working in the Auckland City and Counties Manukau police districts, before returning to the UK in 2008. His killing made him the first police officer fatally shot in the UK since the murders of Nicola Hughes and Fiona Bone in 2012.

On the morning of 25 September 2020, a 23-year-old man, Louis De Zoysa, was arrested for drugs-related offences and possession of ammunition and taken to Croydon Custody Centre. As Sgt Ratana approached to assist in a search of the suspect, De Zoysa fired three shots from a concealed revolver, striking Ratana in the chest and thigh, before being tackled to the ground. During the struggle a fourth shot was fired, striking De Zoysa himself in the neck and causing brain damage. No police firearms were discharged. Ratana was taken to St George's Hospital in Tooting, where he was pronounced dead shortly afterward. The weapon, a Colt .41 Model 1895 "Navy" double-action revolver, had been holstered under De Zoysa's armpit and was missed during an initial pat-down, despite ammunition being found in his pocket and initially mistaken for nitrous oxide canisters.

Following the shooting, investigators established several crime scenes, including a cordon around a block of flats in Norbury and a controlled explosion at a scene in Banstead, Surrey. It emerged that De Zoysa had previously been referred to the Prevent programme. He was arrested on suspicion of murder on 13 November 2020, once considered well enough despite still requiring hospital treatment for his own gunshot wound, and was formally charged with murder on 29 June 2021. He pleaded not guilty on 28 April 2023, appearing via video link from hospital at Northampton Crown Court. His defence argued he has Asperger syndrome and was experiencing an autistic meltdown at the time, and was therefore not guilty of murder. Following trial, De Zoysa was convicted of murder on 23 June 2023 and sentenced on 27 July 2023 to life imprisonment with a whole life order. On 8 May 2025, an appeal against his conviction and sentence was rejected.

An inquest into Ratana's death was held at Croydon Town Hall in November 2023. Senior coroner Sarah Ormond-Walshe found there had been "a failure to carry out a safe, thorough and systematic search," and the inquest concluded with a finding of unlawful killing. The probationer constable who searched De Zoysa, PC Richard Davey, admitted he had neglected his training and should have found the weapon; a colleague, PC Samantha Still, who assisted, also accepted the gun should have been discovered. Footage showed De Zoysa moving during transport to custody, consistent with repositioning the firearm while handcuffed. The Independent Office for Police Conduct subsequently recommended handheld search wands be introduced in police vehicles used for transporting arrested and detained people across England and Wales. Investigators concluded the officers had not strictly followed training but had not breached professional standards, and no disciplinary action was taken. <parameter name="timeline">[ {"date": "1966-05-03", "event": "Matiu (Matt) Ratana is born in the Hawke's Bay Region of New Zealand."}, {"date": "1989", "event": "Ratana moves to England and joins the Metropolitan Police."}, {"date": "2003", "event": "Ratana joins the British High Commission Wing and serves with New Zealand Police."}, {"date": "2008", "event": "Ratana returns to the UK."}, {"date": "2020-09-25", "event": "Sgt Matt Ratana is shot at Croydon Custody Centre by detainee Louis De Zoysa and later pronounced dead at St George's Hospital, Tooting."}, {"date": "2020-11-13", "event": "Louis De Zoysa is arrested on suspicion of murdering a police officer."}, {"date": "2021-06-29", "event": "De Zoysa is formally charged with murder."}, {"date": "2023-04-28", "event": "De Zoysa pleads not guilty to murder via video link at Northampton Crown Court."}, {"date": "2023-06-23", "event": "De Zoysa is convicted of murder following trial at Northampton Crown Court."}, {"date": "2023-07-27", "event": "De Zoysa is sentenced to life imprisonment with a whole life order."}, {"date": "2023-11", "event": "An inquest at Croydon Town Hall concludes with a finding of unlawful killing."}, {"date": "2025-05-08", "event": "De Zoysa's appeal against his conviction and whole life term is rejected."} ]