Second investigation launched following Top Gun tweet by police after tragic Azra Kemal died following crash on A21 near Tonbridge
19:07, 20 July 2024
Another independent review into a tweet sent out by investigators following the tragic death of a 24-year-old woman has been launched.
Law graduate Azra Kemal died after falling 30ft from a road bridge on the A21 near Tonbridge in July 2020 – but within hours of the tragedy Crime Scene Investigators were celebrating their work on the case with a gif from the film Top Gun.
The tweet showed the Top Gun characters Maverick and Goose high-fiving each other and added: “A really busy morning for all of the Kent CSI’s, with the wonders of modern technology we were able to identify a deceased person within about 90 mins of being at the scene by sending an image of a fingerprint direct to our FB Bureau. Great teamwork.”
Another tweet praised drone work carried out at the scene with the hashtag #crackingbitofkit, while a follow-up tweet, within hours of Azra’s death, said police were “satisfied there are no suspicious circumstances” – while Azra’s mother was being told they were still investigating.
The review by the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC), seen by Sky News, was sparked by concerns from Azra’s mother, suggested that detectives at Kent Police did not properly collect, record or evaluate all the information before concluding that the death of Azra Kemal was not suspicious.
The report said: "Having reviewed the review grounds and all the background papers, I agree with your concerns.”
Azra’s mother, Nevres Kemal said: “I really could not believe that a professional police officer would high-five themselves and pat themselves on the back on the back of my daughter’s demise. It’s more than insensitive, it’s unacceptable.
She added: “In my opinion, I do not feel that all available information had been collected, recorded and thoroughly evaluated prior to making a decision… and therefore the service level here is not acceptable."
Also criticised in the report, was the choice to release a suspect which led to another decision not to conduct a full forensic post-mortem on Ms Kemal's body which could have uncovered evidence of anything suspicious happening before her fall.
The complaints are subsequently being re-investigated independently by the Professional Standards Department in Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire and Hertfordshire with Kent Police confirming to Sky News that it is “assisting an independent review of the investigation into the death of Azra Kemal, on 16 July 2020”.
“It would be inappropriate to comment further until any outcomes from the review have been established,” a spokesperson added.
Last year Ms Kemal's mum Nevres, told Sky News she was shocked to find out about the tweet, along with two other “insensitive” posts that have since been removed. She branded the tweet as “horrendous”.
It has also reported that referring to the Top Gun tweet, the IOPC report author told the complainant: “It appeared to you that the force went public with the fact that they were pleased with a quick resolution in this incident; I understand that a complaint has been made about the content of tweets published by the force shortly after the incident.
“Although it is not appropriate for me to go into the detail of those tweets given the ongoing complaint, I make reference to them as I can see that this would only heighten your concerns that the force was in a hurry to complete their investigations and that they were not thorough in their analysis and consideration of the evidence.”
An inquest held in November 2020 heard that Ms Kemal had fallen after the car she’d been travelling in with a friend had caught fire.
The pair had been crossing over the central barriers of the A21 to seek help, but Ms Kemal fell through a gap between the two separate carriageways, which could not be seen in the dark.
The inquest later heard evidence Ms Kemal had been over the drink-drive limit at the time of the incident. She was described as stumbling and unsteady when she spoke to a police officer an hour before her death after he spotted her car on the A27 with its lights off – but she had then sped off at over 100 mph.
Ms Kemal's friend Omar Allen said he had heard Ms Kemal scream as she fell, and she had called for him to come down after the fall. He had tried to leap from the barrier, to cling to a tree, but said it was dark and he couldn't see his friend.
Emergency services were called at around 2.30am and fought to save her life but sadly, Ms Kemal died at the scene.
Coroner Mr Blunsdon recorded a verdict of misadventure.
Despite the inquest’s findings, Ms Kemal’s mother said she was unhappy with the police investigation, and suggested further action should have been undertaken, including a forensic post-mortem.
However, the police said the investigation had been “full and thorough”.
“Officers determined there were no suspicious circumstances, and a man who had initially been arrested in connection with the incident was released without charge,” they said at the time.
“A police investigation into the circumstances then continued for several months to assist an inquest by the coroner. The subsequent inquest into the death returned a verdict of misadventure.
“A complaint about the quality of the investigation was made to Kent Police in November 2020. This complaint was sent to an independent force to review, which concluded the service provided by Kent Police had been acceptable.
“In 2022, The Independent Office for Police Conduct received a request to carry out a further investigation into the complaint.
In response, the IOPC concluded that the investigation into the complaint had been ‘reasonable and proportionate’ and that an acceptable service had been provided in respect of the criminal investigation into the woman’s death. A request to review the complaint was not upheld.”
The force noted that a forensic post-mortem was not carried out, as there were no suspicious circumstances. It did not wish to comment further on the contentious tweets at the time.
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