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Witness History

The killing of Jean Charles de Menezes

Witness History

BBC

Society & Culture, Personal Journals, History

4.51.6K Ratings

🗓️ 7 December 2022

⏱️ 9 minutes

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

On 22 July 2005, an unarmed Brazilian man was shot dead by anti-terrorism police at Stockwell Tube station, in London.

Jean Charles de Menezes was shot seven times in the head because he was mistaken for a terror suspect.

The killing made headlines all over the world and his family demanded justice.

Matt Pintus spoke to Jean Charles’ cousin and best friend, Patricia da Silva, in 2022.

Eye-witness accounts brought to life by archive. Witness History is for those fascinated by the past. We take you to the events that have shaped our world through the eyes of the people who were there. For nine minutes every day, we take you back in time and all over the world, to examine wars, coups, scientific discoveries, cultural moments and much more.

Recent episodes explore everything from football in Brazil, the history of the ‘Indian Titanic’ and the invention of air fryers, to Public Enemy’s Fight The Power, subway art and the political crisis in Georgia. We look at the lives of some of the most famous leaders, artists, scientists and personalities in history, including: visionary architect Antoni Gaudi and the design of the Sagrada Familia; Michael Jordan and his bespoke Nike trainers; Princess Diana at the Taj Mahal; and Görel Hanser, manager of legendary Swedish pop band Abba on the influence they’ve had on the music industry. You can learn all about fascinating and surprising stories, such as the time an Iraqi journalist hurled his shoes at the President of the United States in protest of America’s occupation of Iraq; the creation of the Hollywood commercial that changed advertising forever; and the ascent of the first Aboriginal MP.

(Photo: A memorial for Jean Charles de Menezes outside Stockwell Tube station. Credit: Oli Scarff / Getty Images)

Transcript

Click on a timestamp to play from that location

0:00.0

Hello and welcome to this edition of The Witness History Podcast from the BBC World

0:08.5

Service with me, Matt Pintus.

0:10.8

Today, I'm bringing you the story of Jean-Charles Demenezes, a Brazilian man who was shot dead

0:17.5

by police in London.

0:19.4

They thought he was a terrorist, but he wasn't.

0:24.3

This is Somers Day in London on the 22nd of July 2005.

0:29.6

Patricia De Silva has just finished work.

0:32.7

I went to the library to use the computer to access the internet, and I saw the police

0:41.0

shoot to kill one guy in the tube station.

0:45.7

Good afternoon, armed police have shot a man dead at Stockwell Underground Station in

0:49.8

South London.

0:50.8

Witnesses say the man was chased onto a tube train by plane co-s officers and then shot

0:55.5

at close range in front of dozens of terrified passengers.

0:58.7

I remember, I am feeling not bad, not good, I am feeling strange.

1:05.2

When Patricia gets home, her flatmate and cousin Jean is nowhere to be seen, but it's

1:10.4

Friday night, the start of the weekend, she thinks he's probably out partying.

1:16.0

The next morning, Patricia goes to work, but this time when she gets back, there is

1:20.4

someone in the flat.

1:21.9

It's her friend, Jazu, and he looks upset.

1:24.8

They said to me, Jean was arrested because he suspect to be a terrorist.

1:31.5

I said to him, what, what do you tell me, he has Patricia, the police contact us, and

1:38.9

the show was the Jean photo, and they said, Jean was arrested as suspect of terrorist.

...

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