The first incident, which occurred in Mitcham late on Saturday night, resulted in a man receiving a gunshot wound to his back, which was not believed to be life-threatening. It is understood that none of the incidents were linked. In all three shootings, the victims were sitting in cars when a gunman approached and opened fire. In London, over the Coronation weekend, four people were shot in three separate incidents. “It has been decided that name changes might make a difference to trust and confidence, so that is what is happening.” Three shootings “We have got a situation where the people who should not fear the police are frightened to death of them and those who should fear them do not.”Ī Met source said: “Following the Casey Review, people in the force are taking a really close look at everything to see what needs to change. These men and women are going out to face armed villains. “I do not have a problem with the police using aggressive names for units that are going out and tackling dangerous criminals. It is all just a bit ridiculous and raises questions about priorities. Susan Hall, leader of the City Hall Conservatives and a member of the Policing and Crime Committee, said: “I assume they have got their reasons, but a mobile phone is stolen every six minutes, burglaries are not being solved. There has also been discussion over whether the Metropolitan Police itself should be renamed in a bid to restore public confidence. Other Met units are also being considered for rebranding, including Parliamentary and Diplomatic Protection (PaDP), where Wayne Couzens and David Carrick worked.Ī rebrand was considered necessary because of the toxic association with Sarah Everard’s killer and the serial rapist. When launched, the unit was assisted by officers from firearms response units, who carried a handgun or pistol and a semi-automatic carbine or semi-automatic compact rifle.Ī source said it was decided that Operation Viper sounded too aggressive and militaristic, and Proactive Armed Team was a better reflection of what it did. Operation Viper, set up in 2016, carries out targeted intelligence-led operations in areas where there are reports of gun violence and activity. The renaming of the unit, which was established to address the rise in gun crime across London, comes in the wake of the Casey Review, which accused the Met of institutional racism, misogyny and homophobia, and warned that the force had lost the trust of the public it policed. Operation Viper will be rebranded as the Proactive Armed Team, after Met bosses expressed concern that the association with venomous snakes portrayed the wrong image. Scotland Yard has renamed one of its units that tackles violent gun crime to make it sound less aggressive, the Telegraph can reveal.
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