On the morning of 7 March 2025, Julian Cole’s family announced that he had passed away. His friends had visited him in hospital the day before and his mother Claudia and brother Claudius were at his bedside. Julian had been in a minimally conscious state for 11 years since he was violently arrested by Bedfordshire police officers on 6 May 2013.

Julian “Julez” Cole: 10 July 1993 – 7 March 2025

Julian was born in North West London on 10 July 1993 to his parents Claude and Claudia and was welcomed by his brother Claudius who was six years older than him. Julian was vibrant, social and well-mannered and shared his family’s Christian faith. He was an excellent athlete and sportsman and played football for Watford Youth Club. Julian was a passionate Arsenal fan. Thierry Henry was his inspiration and Julian and Claudius would watch games together whenever they could. In 2012 he started a degree at the University of Bedfordshire in Sports Science. His aim was to pursue a career as a PE teacher and further to follow his passion and train to be a football coach.

Towards the end of his first year, Julian attended a nightclub in Bedford with a few friends. At approximately 1.30am he was told to leave the nightclub in relation to holding a barrier during a live performance. Shortly after, his friends were also asked to leave. Julian who had drunk very little during the course of the night remonstrated about this with security on the forecourt of the club.  Julian who was 5’ 8’’ was then subjected to two ‘take downs’. The first ‘take down’ involved security staff and police officers, who had arrived in the area, but Julian managed to get back to his feet. However, he was then immediately taken to the ground again by PC Hannah Ross, PC Nicholas Oates and PC Sanjeev Kalyan and was restrained on the ground. Seven different witnesses have described at least one police officer kneeling on Julian or using bodyweight to restrain him. Four witnesses described this force being applied on his upper body and/or around his neck. Julian was handcuffed while being restrained on the ground at about 1.48am. 

When the officers lifted him from the ground his unsupported head hung down and he was unable to stand. The officers put him on the ground again before lifting him and carrying him to the police van as his head hung and his legs and feet dragged behind him. Witnesses described him as ‘lifeless’ and lifted like a ‘ragdoll’.

Julian had suffered a fracture of his C2 vertebra (a hangman’s fracture). Either at the same time as the second take down, or shortly after; while his neck was unsupported and he was being manhandled by the police; he suffered a near complete spinal cord injury.

Julian was driven to Greyfriars Police Station. He was lifted and dragged from the van towards the entrance of the police station. He was then placed face down on the ground before being lifted again and dragged back into the van. An ambulance was called. PC Ross dishonestly briefed the paramedics that Julian had been ‘chatting’, that he had walked to the police van and shown no signs of ill health until they arrived at the police station when he ‘went all floppy and collapsed’. Julian suffered a cardiac arrest that led to severe hypoxic brain injury. His handcuffs were not removed until the paramedics commenced CPR in the back of the ambulance.

PC Oates, PC Ross, PC Kalyan, PS Withey and Inspector Fosbury began writing up their notebook records of the incident from approximately 03:00, whilst all in the same room.

A Disciplinary Panel in 2018 found that PC Ross, PC Oates and PC Kalyan lied in both their pocket notebooks and subsequent statements to investigators about Julian’s condition after he was restrained and when he was taken to the police van. The Chair of the panel stated that “the false accounts were intended to mislead and divert attention from their actions as they inevitably came under scrutiny.” The officers were found to have breached the  standards of honesty and integrity and they were dismissed from the force for gross misconduct.

The presenting officer at the hearing stated: “You may take the view that from the moment notes were made there was intent to fabricate, intent to conceal. I draw your attention to evidence of genuine remorse … in my respectful submission that is absent in this case. They have maintained their lies to the bitter end.”

The three officers together with a fourth officer, Sgt Andrew Withey, were also found to have committed misconduct after failing to conduct adequate welfare checks on Julian. Specifically, there were multiple opportunities when the officers could or should have been aware that Julian was unresponsive, and they should have sought urgent medical assistance for him but did not. 

At a settlement approval hearing on 26 January 2024, Mr Justice Martin Spencer stated in his judgment that:

“…on two occasions, Julian was taken to the ground by the police.  On the second occasion, it would appear that Julian sustained severe injuries including a cervical fracture and damage to his spinal cord, and a subsequent hypoxic brain injury from which he has never recovered.  There has been no admission of liability but the fact that this settlement has been reached, and the circumstances in which Julian sustained his injuries leave little doubt that the actions of the police officers were responsible for Julian’s injuries and that those actions were indefensible.

“Unfortunately, the matter was compounded by a concerted attempt on the part of the police officers involved then to falsify their account of the events, and that led to disciplinary proceedings…and three police officers, PC Hannah Ross, PC Nicholas Oates and PC Sanjeev Kalyan, were dismissed from the force as a result of that disciplinary hearing.”

For now, this is the closest the family have got to a formal recognition that the officers were responsible for causing Julian’s catastrophic injuries, and that further they tried to cover it up.

To date the Crown Prosecution Service has declined to bring any charges against the officers concerned, either in relation to the injuries or the cover-up.

The family have now been notified by the North London Coroner that he has commenced an investigation into the causes of Julian’s death.

The family ask that their privacy be respected at this difficult time.