The 2017 police shooting of Yassar Yaqub near Huddersfield prompted public debate over use of lethal force and resulted in a 2022 inquest verdict of lawful killing.
Key Facts
- Date of shooting
- 2 January 2017
- Location
- M62 motorway junction 24, Huddersfield
- Inquest verdict
- Lawful killing, November 2022
- Driver Mohsin Amin sentence
- 18 years for conspiracy to possess firearm
- BBC documentary
- Hometown: A Killing (2019–2020)
By the Numbers
Location
Cause → Event → Consequence
West Yorkshire Police were conducting a covert firearms operation linked to an alleged ongoing drug feud. Intelligence led officers to intercept two cars travelling in convoy, with evidence later suggesting Yassar Yaqub was armed and that those in the convoy had a preconceived plan to use the weapon in a way that endangered life.
On the evening of 2 January 2017, four unmarked police vehicles stopped two cars at a sliproad near junction 24 of the M62 motorway near Huddersfield. While the driver Mohsin Amin complied with police instructions, passenger Yassar Yaqub crouched down and raised his hands in a manner that led the firearms officer, designated V39, to believe he was holding a handgun. The officer discharged his firearm, fatally wounding Yaqub.
A 2018 trial at Leeds Crown Court found driver Mohsin Amin guilty of conspiracy to possess a firearm with intent to endanger life and sentenced him to 18 years in prison. A November 2022 inquest jury returned a verdict of lawful killing. The case generated significant public controversy and was the subject of a BBC documentary series and podcast titled Hometown: A Killing.