A fatal accident inquiry (FAI) into the death of an asylum seeker who was shot dead by police after going on a knife rampage at a hotel in Glasgow is expected to take up to 12 weeks.
Badreddin Abdalla Adam Bosh, 28, an asylum seeker from Sudan, stabbed six people on June 26 2020.
He was being housed at the Park Inn Hotel, West George Street, Glasgow, where the attack happened, and was one of hundreds of asylum seekers moved into hotels in Glasgow at the start of the Covid-19 lockdown in 2020.
Mr Bosh was shot dead by police who attended the scene.
A preliminary hearing at Glasgow Sheriff Court was told the inquiry will examine “areas of dispute” including whether mental health assessment was sufficient; and whether tasers should be classified similarly to batons when used by police officers.
The Home Office, Mears Group PLC, the Scottish Police Federation, Glasgow City Council, the Scottish Ambulance Service, and Migrant Help UK are some of the organisations which will have legal representation.
Sheriff Principal Aisha Anwar said that an anonymity order for police officers involved has been granted and that the fatal accident inquiry is expected to take between 10 to 12 weeks.
She said that the incident had been “clearly distressing for all involved”.
Last year, Lord Advocate Dorothy Bain decided it was in the public interest to hold a discretionary FAI.
Emma Toner, representing Police Scotland, said: “The principle area of interest is in the police response to the incident.”
The hearing at Glasgow Sheriff Court was told that Police Scotland “had no knowledge that the hotel was housing asylum seekers” and that there could have been the opportunity to “de-escalate”, according to Shelagh McCall KC, representing the Scottish Police Federation.
Ms McCall said: “Police Scotland had no knowledge that this hotel housed asylum seekers at relevant time. Had that been communicated there was the opportunity for community engagement with staff and residents at hotel.
“Community policing can help with issues before they escalate.”
She said that other issues were “in relation to a spontaneous firearms incident”, and the armed police operating standard procedure, regarding “communication difficulties” and “whether there are others in the area which match the description of the suspect”.
She said that many of the asylum seekers at the hotel did not speak English but had to communicate with armed police, and that the inquiry would hear evidence that tasers “were used by trained officers who need permission to deploy” and “should be treated like batons”.
Sheriff Principal Anwar said that the scope for investigating mental health training for officers was “too broad” but that “whether they had been made aware of it, would be different”.
Adam Black, representing NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde, said: “One area of dispute is questions around assessment of Mr Bosh’s mental health.”
Sheriff Principal Anwar said: “Clearly this incident was distressing for all those involved, there is keen interest in moving forward, and that all parties are prepared.”
She fixed a further preliminary hearing for September 15.
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