Matt Ratana shooting: NZ-born cop’s wife sues Metropolitan Police in London

The grieving widow of a New Zealand-born policeman killed in the line of duty in Britain is suing London’s Metropolitan Police, accusing them of a “shoddy and inadequate” search of his killer.

Matiu (Matt) Ratana was shot dead in 2020 at a police station in Croydon, London after staff failed to take a gun from a suspect being processed into custody.

The veteran officer was shot dead despite Louis de Zoysa being arrested and searched by his colleagues.

Their failure to find the antique revolver he had stashed in an underarm holster came despite arresting officers finding bullets in his pockets.

Sergent Matt Ratana with his partner Su Busby.

A London coroner’s court ruled last year that the death of the 30-year Met Police veteran was an “unlawful killing”.

Ratana’s widow Su Bushby, 47, placed the blame squarely at the foot of the police, the Press Association reported.

Bushby told British media she was not told about the blunder which meant De Zoysa did not have handcuffs on or an officer holding him.

“If it was an effective search the gun would have been found on de Zoysa and Matt would be alive now,’ she told the Mirror.

NZ-born cop Matt Ratana was shot and killed at Croydon Custody Centre. Photo / File

“The shoddy and ­inadequate search by officers was a neglect of their duty and left Matt ­vulnerable. The number of failures that came out during the inquest has left me ­devastated.”

“I have not been informed by anyone during this time that the actions of the Metropolitan Police may have ­contributed towards Matt’s death,” she told British media.

In a statement to the Herald, a Met Police spokesperson said: “We have received a civil claim in relation to the murder of Matt Ratana and remain in dialogue with the claimant’s legal representative.

“We will not be discussing further while the claim remains ongoing.”

Ratana posing at his old school - Palmerston North Boy's High School.

De Zoysa shot Ratana at Croydon Custody Centre in south London as he was about to be searched. He had been arrested for possessing drugs and bullets.

But during an initial search, the arresting officers didn’t find the 41-calibre revolver loaded with six rounds he kept in an underarm holster.

The former data analyst for the British tax office sat in the dock in a wheelchair during the three-week trial at Northampton Crown Court in central England last year.

De Zoysa’s lawyers argued he had pulled the trigger during an autistic meltdown, but jurors decided he had fired deliberately.

He was sentenced on July 27 last year to life imprisonment with a whole life order.

It’s rare for police officers to be shot and killed in Britain, which has strict firearms laws. Ratana was the 17th from the London force to be killed by a gun since 1945.

Before Ratana, the last London police officer killed in the line of duty was Constable Keith Palmer, who was stabbed to death in March 2017 during a vehicle and knife attack outside Parliament.