Murder Victim. Born in Sunderland, he was serving at Muswell Hill as a Metropolitan Police Constable during the civil unrest that plagued London during the 1980s. In early October, information filtered through to the station that trouble was stirring in Tottenham over the death of a middle aged black woman who had collapsed of heart failure during a police raid on her home. He and his partner, PC Richard Coombes, and ten other constables responded to a request for assistance from the Fire Brigade who were dealing with a blaze at Broadwater Farm estate that involved overturned, burning cars piled across the sidewalks near apartments were a group threw gasoline bombs down at them. An additional fire was reported at the supermarket next to the Broadwater Farm Youth Association. The constables, armed only with riot shields and truncheons, were deployed to protect firefighters. PCs Blakelock and Coombes were stationed at the bottom of some stairs within a to ensure that the fire unit inside was covered. A mob, heavily armed with knives and machetes, appeared within minutes and faced off with the officers. One constable said that they were only there to protect the firemen, but the mob charged. The overwhelmed police and firefighters were forced to withdraw. Retreating, PC Blakelock slipped and went down. He was immediately engulfed by rioters who beat, hacked, and stabbed him to death. Attempts to rescue him resulted in near fatal injuries to PC Coombes who survived only because fellow officers covered him with a riot shield and fought off the attackers long enough to drag him to safety. Blakelock was posthumously awarded the Queen's Gallantry Medal. A memorial to him stands by the Muswell Hill Roundabout, London.
Murder Victim. Born in Sunderland, he was serving at Muswell Hill as a Metropolitan Police Constable during the civil unrest that plagued London during the 1980s. In early October, information filtered through to the station that trouble was stirring in Tottenham over the death of a middle aged black woman who had collapsed of heart failure during a police raid on her home. He and his partner, PC Richard Coombes, and ten other constables responded to a request for assistance from the Fire Brigade who were dealing with a blaze at Broadwater Farm estate that involved overturned, burning cars piled across the sidewalks near apartments were a group threw gasoline bombs down at them. An additional fire was reported at the supermarket next to the Broadwater Farm Youth Association. The constables, armed only with riot shields and truncheons, were deployed to protect firefighters. PCs Blakelock and Coombes were stationed at the bottom of some stairs within a to ensure that the fire unit inside was covered. A mob, heavily armed with knives and machetes, appeared within minutes and faced off with the officers. One constable said that they were only there to protect the firemen, but the mob charged. The overwhelmed police and firefighters were forced to withdraw. Retreating, PC Blakelock slipped and went down. He was immediately engulfed by rioters who beat, hacked, and stabbed him to death. Attempts to rescue him resulted in near fatal injuries to PC Coombes who survived only because fellow officers covered him with a riot shield and fought off the attackers long enough to drag him to safety. Blakelock was posthumously awarded the Queen's Gallantry Medal. A memorial to him stands by the Muswell Hill Roundabout, London.
Bio by: Iola
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