Matt Ratana: Met custody sergeant murder accused 'sad' officer died, court hears

The man accused of murdering custody sergeant Matt Ratana said he was "sad" to hear the officer had died, as he denied wanting or meaning to kill him or cause him “really serious harm”.Louis De Zoysa, 25, is accused of shooting dead Sgt Ratana at a custody block in Croydon on September 25 2020 while he was handcuffed.

De Zoysa began giving evidence in a modified way on Tuesday because of communication difficulties after he suffered brain damage due to a gunshot wound.

The prosecution alleges De Zoysa, who denies murder, “pulled the trigger on purpose four times” while he was handcuffed in a holding room at the custody centre, the first and second shots hitting Sgt Ratana, the third hitting the wall during a struggle with officers, and a fourth hitting De Zoysa himself.

De Zoysa sat in a wheelchair in the well of the court with a small whiteboard and marker on the desk in front of him to give evidence during his trial at Northampton Crown Court.

De Zoysa agreed that the CCTV footage showed him firing a gun at 54-year-old Sgt Ratana and that the prosecution say he murdered him.

Asked what murder meant, De Zoysa said: “Kill.”

Imran Khan KC, defending, asked: “Are you guilty of murder, Louis?”

De Zoysa told his barrister “no” but later said he did not know what “guilty” meant.

He went on to deny wanting or meaning to kill Sgt Ratana or cause him “really serious harm”.

Earlier, Mr Justice Johnson told the jury: “The arrangements for the defendant to give evidence depart from what would ordinarily happen.”

De Zoysa promised to tell the truth in a modified oath, confirmed his name verbally and confirmed his date of birth and age using the whiteboard.

He had been arrested on London Road, Norbury during the early hours of September 25 2020, after a stop and search by officers found he had cannabis and seven rounds of ammunition.

Officers did not know De Zoysa, of Banstead, Surrey, had a gun until it was used to shoot Sgt Ratana.

Jurors have been told they will have to consider whether De Zoysa deliberately fired the revolver and the question of diminished responsibility.

Imran Khan KC, defending, previously told the jury that the defendant was suffering an autistic meltdown at the time of the shooting.

De Zoysa said he had autism and would regularly get stressed, leading him to punch chairs and walls.

Questioned on his family, De Zoysa confirmed his father used to “beat” him over “trivial matters”.

He wrote the word “coke” on his whiteboard before adding: “He is a criminal. He used to be a drug dealer.”

The defendant drew a stickman wearing a cast on one leg before confirming that his father hit and broke his leg.

The incident caused him to feel a “brewing” inside of him which he could not further explain, the court heard.

De Zoysa went on to say he hit his father on the head using a metal rod in an apparent separate incident and did it out of “panic” – a feeling which he said was “possibly” caused by his autism.

He was arrested for “fighting” his father in June 2019.

Jurors watched police body-worn video of De Zoysa’s 2019 arrest in which an officer could be heard saying: “He’s kicked his father off his bike.”

Asked about the incident, De Zoysa said his dad was upsetting him and talking “too loud”.

The jury heard more about the defendant’s home life including an inference that he liked eating dinner alone because there was “violence” at the dinner table with his “family” which was “crazy”.

He confirmed that he broke the stairs in his family home and set a carpet on fire because he was “upset”.

The court also heard he smoked cannabis because of “stress” which helped him feel “mellow”.

Jurors were told De Zoysa was bullied at school, the defendant explaining that his peers threw chains at him because he was “vulnerable” and an “easy target”.

But he received three A’s at A-Level for Chemistry, Physics and Maths and attended University College London – although he did not finish his degree.

He worked in coding at HMRC and told the jury he got on well with his colleagues.

The trial continues.

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