Shot officer appeals judge's rejection of $17.6m suit

A police officer, whose $17.6 million claim against the police force over a head injury sustained in a raid was thrown out by a judge, is to lodge an appeal in the High Court today.

Mr Justice Azizul Suffiad of the Court of First Instance last month dismissed Inspector Chan Sze-ki's claim against the force and Trevor John Oakes, who supervised the raid in April 1992, clearing both of any negligence.

Inspector Chan, who was shot in the head when he and 12 other officers raided a building in Li Tak Street, Tai Kok Tsui, on April 24, 1992, had accused the force of negligence by putting him in charge of a raid against heavily armed robbers without adequate training, leadership or backup.

The raid was connected to a series of armed robberies. The five robbers in the flat opened fire with assault rifles and threw grenades at the lightly armed police.

In the notice of appeal, Inspector Chan claims the judge failed to give any weight to a report by the Organised Crime and Triad Bureau.

The report said the police had reliable information from an informer that the flat was directly connected to heavily armed robbers recently involved in a number of goldsmith shop robberies.

Inspector Chan also claims the police were 'negligent in making the decision to assign and instruct the plaintiff (Chan) and his subordinates in mounting the operation to raid the target premises'.

Inspector Chan, who is still with the police, has been in and out of hospital since the injury.