The Death of Colin Roach
Colin Roach was a 21-year-old Black British man who died from a gunshot wound inside the public foyer of Stoke Newington Police Station in East London on 12 January 1983. His death remains one of the most controversial cases involving the Metropolitan Police and became an early catalyst for campaigns demanding greater accountability, transparency and justice following deaths connected to the police.
Police stated that Colin entered the station carrying a sports bag containing a sawn-off shotgun before fatally shooting himself. At the 1983 inquest, the jury returned a majority verdict of suicide, accepting evidence that the gunshot had been fired at close range and was self-inflicted. However, the jury also criticised the Metropolitan Police for the way they handled the investigation and for their treatment of Colin’s family in the aftermath of his death.
From the outset, Colin’s family rejected the official explanation. They raised concerns about inconsistencies in the forensic evidence, including the absence of fingerprints on the shotgun or ammunition, questions surrounding the size of the weapon in relation to the sports bag it was allegedly carried in, and the lack of injuries that some believed would normally be expected following the discharge of such a weapon. These concerns led to persistent calls for an independent public inquiry.
When no public inquiry was granted, the Roach Family Support Committee carried out its own investigation and continued campaigning throughout the 1980s. Colin’s case became a focal point for wider concerns about policing in Black communities and contributed to growing public scrutiny of racism, accountability and police conduct in East London.
UFFC recognises Colin’s death as one of the cases that helped shape the modern campaigns against deaths in police, prison and psychiatric custody. His family’s determination inspired many others facing similar struggles in the years that followed.
Further questions about the case emerged decades later during the Undercover Policing Inquiry, which revealed that officers from the Metropolitan Police’s Special Demonstration Squad had infiltrated and monitored the Roach Family Support Committee and associated campaign groups. These revelations added to longstanding concerns about how the authorities responded not only to Colin’s death but also to those seeking answers.
More than forty years later, Colin Roach’s case continues to symbolise the importance of independent scrutiny, transparency and accountability. His family’s campaign remains a significant part of the United Families & Friends Campaign’s history and the wider movement for justice following deaths involving the state.