Two Met Police marksmen are facing misconduct proceedings over an incident more than five years ago when they opened fire on an armed robber.
Brooklyn McFarlane was shot in a police ambush as he and another robber prepared to carry out a raid on a Sainsbury’s store in Wimbledon on December 3, 2018.
The officers, codenamed NX1 and MY55, who fired their weapons are both part of the Met’s Specialist Firearms Command.
They faced criminal charges in 2020, but the case against them was later dropped.
Now, they are facing a disciplinary hearing over the shooting, and if found guilty of gross misconduct they could face the end of their policing careers.
A note on the Met Police website sets out that the officers are accused of breaching professional standards through “use of force”, alleging they “discharged their weapons and one bullet struck the suspect causing him injury”.
“It is further alleged that this conduct amounts to gross misconduct, namely a breach of the standards of professional behaviour that, if proved, is so serious that their dismissal would be justified.”
McFarlane was part of a gang of robbers who stole £400,000 in a series of violent raids on cash vans and commercial premises.
Security guards came under attack from the gang who armed themselves with weapons and used stolen cars to travel to and from raids in London, Oxford, Bedfordshire, and Northamptonshire between May 2018 and November 2019.
The gang was ultimately smashed in an operation led by the Met’s Flying Squad, who put the criminals under surveillance and tracked their movements.
McFarlane was reportedly taken to hospital for treatment to a gunshot wound after the Wimbledon shooting, before being discharged the following day.
Officer NX1 was charged in the criminal case with unlawfully wounding with intent, and Officer MY55 faced an allegation of attempted unlawful wounding with intent.
McFarlane, a Wandsworth resident, was jailed in 2022 for 13 years after admitting conspiracy to commit robbery, weapons charges, and handling stolen goods.
The misconduct hearing for the two firearms officers has been scheduled to start on April 15 and last a total of 17 days.
