No charges against officers in shooting

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LONDON, July 17 (UPI) -- No charges will be filed against the anti-terror officers in Britain in the shooting of a Brazilian electrician last year due to insufficient evidence.

The Times of London reported the Metropolitan Police Commissioner's office instead would be charged under health and safety laws in the death of Jean Charles de Menezes, who was shot seven times in the head at a London subway station after being mistaken for a suicide bomber. Those charges carry the imposition of a fine.

An investigator said he was convinced the officers fired after believing Menezes was about to detonate a bomb.

"In order to prosecute those officers, we would have to prove, beyond reasonable doubt, that they did not honestly and genuinely hold those beliefs," he said, adding there were many mistakes in the operation but those mistakes were not enough to bring charges.

The Times quoted family members of the victim had said earlier they would be "very, very disappointed" if prosecutors decided only to pursue health and safety charges relating to not providing for the safety and welfare of Menezes.