No official inquiry to be held into deaths of three asylum seekers who jumped to their deaths from Glasgow tower block

THE CROWN Office will not hold an inquiry into the deaths of three Russian asylum seekers who plunged to their deaths from a Glasgow’s Red Road flats.

• Family had been due to return to Canada where they had been granted protection

• Campaigners say deaths caused in part by British asylum policy

Serguei Serykh, his wife Tatiana, and stepson, Stepan, jumped from their home in the Red Road housing complex in the north of the city.

The triple suicide in March of 2010 is believed to have been sparked by a Home Office letter informing the family that their accomodation was to be withdrawn.

The three Russian nationals had been living in the flats for a short time after arriving from Canada.

Hundreds of people calling for an end to the “enforced removal” of refugee families joined a march in their memory.

The suicides were brought to the attention of First Minister Alex Salmond and Prime Minister Gordon Brown, which resulted in Brown issuing his “sincere condolences”.

FORCED REMOVALS

A letter sent to the Lord Advocate by the charity Positive Action in Housing demanded a fatal accident inquiry.

Director Robina Qureshi, wrote: “Based on our experiences of the way the UK asylum policy operates on Scottish soil, we believe that the Serykh family would still be alive were it not for the way they were treated by the UK asylum system.”

The Crown Office has now responded to the calls by saying:”Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service (COPFS) has completed its extensive investigation into the deaths of Serguei, Tatiana and Stepan Serykhm, who died in the Springburn area of north east Glasgow on March 7 2010.

“The matter was reported to Crown counsel who have fully considered all the circumstances and have concluded that it is not in the public interest to hold a fatal accident inquiry.

“In the course of the investigation, and in keeping with the obligations under Article 2 of the European Convention on Human Rights, COPFS made contact with the nearest relative of the family and advised her of the circumstances of the tragedy and Crown counsel’s decision.”

According to the UK Border Agency the Serykhs had been granted protection in Canada and were due to return there. No imminent action to remove them from the UK had been planned.