A senior coroner has issued a stern warning to Metropolitan Police officers, threatening contempt of court proceedings and possible jail time if they continue to defy court orders and delay inquests.

The rebuke from Senior Coroner Graeme Irvine came during a hearing at East London Coroner’s Court on Friday (April 11), where he ordered a PC and a sergeant to appear in person after what he called “the straw that broke the camel’s back” — a failure to follow court instructions in the case of 23-year-old Anna Bellamy, who was found dead at her home in Upminster last October.

“Not Good Enough”

Miss Bellamy’s death is believed to have been a suicide, and the coroner had previously ordered the Metropolitan Police Service (MPS) to examine her electronic devices for evidence of intent. However, six months later, the items had not even left the police station.

“I found to my horror that the electronic devices have not moved from the police station,” Mr Irvine said. “They have not been assessed by anybody and there doesn’t appear to be any movement.”

“This is not good enough,” he added. “Unless the force can weave some sort of magic, her inquest will have to be delayed.”

“Contempt of Court Can Lead to Prison”

Addressing PC Muhammad Asad, who admitted fault, Mr Irvine said:

“If judicial orders are not followed, proceedings under the Contempt of Court Act can follow — and that can result in people going to prison. That doesn’t apply to your sergeant. It doesn’t apply to your duty inspector. It applies to you.”

He told PC Asad he would not be referred to the police watchdog but ordered him to write directly to Miss Bellamy’s family to explain the failure.

“I’m grateful for your transparency and your candour,” Mr Irvine said, before making clear that this incident was symptomatic of wider issues.

“I am that camel — and at the minute, I am very much heavily laden with lots of strands of straw of the failures of the Metropolitan Police Service to do their job.”

Mounting Pressure on the Met

The coroner warned that if improvements were not seen, he would require a police officer to attend every inquest, as some coroners already do.

He also threatened to summon the Met’s digital forensics team if they fail to expedite the analysis of Miss Bellamy’s devices.

Turning to the attending sergeant, Mr Irvine ordered them to relay the seriousness of the situation to the duty inspector and highlighted that he had already raised concerns with the borough commander.

Metropolitan Police Response

In response, Superintendent Neal Donohoe issued an apology:

“We deeply regret any distress this may have caused Anna’s family and offer our sincere apologies.
I fully accept that we did not carry out the coroner’s request in a timely manner and have fallen short of the standards the public rightly expect.”

The Met confirmed that steps are now being taken to resolve the matter swiftly — but did not respond to the coroner’s broader criticisms of systemic failings in case handling and evidence provision.

A Family Still Waiting

Miss Bellamy’s grieving family, already enduring months of uncertainty, now face a further delay in the inquest process due to what the coroner described as the Met’s inexcusable lack of action.

“This court owes them answers,” Mr Irvine said. “And those answers must come quickly.”