Crowds turn out for London funeral of police shooting victim

Sep 9, 2011, 14:58 GMT

London - Hundreds of mourners Friday attended the funeral of Mark Duggan, the victim of a police shooting that triggered four days of rioting across London and other cities in England last month.

Duggan, who police said was suspected of drug dealing, died from a single gunshot wound to the chest during the incident in Tottenham, north London, on August 4, an inquest ruled.

Initial reports that he had shot at the police were dismissed by ballistic tests.

His family, while alleging that he became the victim of police shoot-to-kill policy, have said they did not condone the violence that followed.

Duggan's funeral cortege, led by a white carriage pulled by four white horses, was followed by a long procession of cars as crowds lined the streets.

In a statement handed out ahead of the church service, Bishop Barrington Burrell said that 'grave questions' had been raised by Duggan's death.

Pastor Nims Obunge of the New Testament Church, who led the church service, told mourners that the local community had seen 'too much blood.'

'For so long we have said there is something wrong, for so long we have ached about what is wrong, and it took the death of Mark to show that there's something wrong,' he said.

Although large number of police have remained in the area in the wake of the riots, their presence remained low-key Friday.

'We have met with Mr Duggan's parents. In line with the family's wishes, the policing will reflect the family's desire for a local, peaceful and dignified funeral,' said a police spokesman.

More than 2,000 people were arrested in the aftermath of the riots, which also hit Birmingham, Liverpool, Manchester and other cities in what was the most serious wave of rioting, arson and looting to hit Britain since the early 1980s.