Police told to stop de Menezes 'at all costs', inquest hears

Police following Jean Charles de Menezes in London were ordered to stop him "at all costs", a retired detective has told an inquest into his shooting.

Mark Lewindon, who was a detective chief inspector in Special Branch at the time of the failed July 22, 2005, bombings, was in the operations room at New Scotland Yard that morning.

He told the inquest at The Oval cricket ground into the shooting of the innocent Brazilian that he overheard Commander Cressida Dick, the senior policewoman in charge of the operation, issuing an order.

"It was said he shouldn't be allowed to get on the train and I think the words she used were 'at all costs'," he said.

However, when questioned by Miss Dick's QC, David Perry, whether he was certain about the words used, he replied: "I'm not sure if you are asking the question, what you are saying, you may be wrong about that and I could be wrong, yes."

Mr Perry QC said: "I'm going to suggest Cressida Dick didn't say 'at all costs'. She did say, so it's clear, that he was to be stopped, but she didn't use the words 'at all costs'."

Mr Lewindon told the inquest Detective Chief Superintendent Jon Boutcher attempted to establish whether Mr de Menezes, who was being followed by surveillance officers, was a suspect.

He said: "There were questions around the identity of the person being followed and I remember Mr Boutcher asking for a percentage, to which the people following, the surveillance teams, were confident that the person being followed was a suspect."

He said he didn't remember whether there had been any response from the surveillance team to that question.

The inquest also heard from Detective Inspector Andrew Whiddett, who was managing surveillance teams.

He explained briefing documents were not produced for the surveillance officers because intelligence was changing minute by minute and they did not take photographs of suspects with them.