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This page contains press release 44/05, in which the Metropolitan Police Authority Chair makes a statement on the financial compensation to the de Menezes family.
Warning: This is archived material and may be out of date. The Metropolitan Police Authority has been replaced by the Mayor's Office for Policing and Crime (MOPC).
See the MOPC website for further information.
Statement by Len Duvall, Chair of the Metropolitan Police Authority - financial compensation to the de Menezes family
44/05
22 August 2005
Len Duvall, Chair of the MPA, commenting on the payment made by the MPS to the de Menezes family, said:
“The matter of financial compensation to the de Menezes family has caused great confusion.
“Letters written in tragic situations such as this do of course have to be legally crafted, and as a result can appear insensitive. The letter was also made available to the family in Portuguese and an interpreter was present at the meeting.
“The MPA agreed that the MPS could make payment to the family to cover costs of repatriating Jean Charles’ body to Brazil, air fares of family members in the UK who wished to return to Brazil for the funeral, and the costs of the funeral itself.
“The MPA also agreed an ex gratia payment to the family, intended as immediate and tangible financial assistance and in part payment of any compensation awarded as a result of legal proceedings. This ex gratia sum was £15,000.
“These matters were explained by DAC Yates when he met the de Menezes family in Brazil. They were encouraged to take independent legal advice from a solicitor in England, and he confirmed that the MPS would meet their legal costs. At this stage it is not possible to quantify what compensation might be payable by reference to UK law.”
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