A 68-year-old man who was critically injured while he tried to stamp out a fire during riots in west London has died, Scotland Yard has said.

Richard Mannington Bowes (Photo above)suffered head injuries in an attack in Ealing on Monday night and was left in a coma.

A 22-year-old man has been arrested in connection with his death.

Police say four other deaths – a man found shot in a car in Croydon and three men hit by a car in Birmingham – may be linked to the recent disorder.

In other developments:

• Magistrates have again been sitting in London throughout the night to hear the cases of some those arrested during the violence. Many face charges of handling stolen goods, or breaches of public order. Courts also sat late into the evening in Birmingham and Manchester
• Association of Chief Police Officers president Sir Hugh Orde said it was the police, and not MPs, who devised the “more robust” approach that restored calm after four nights of rioting in England David Cameron announced a crackdown on facemasks and a review on the use of curfews during an emergency debate in Parliament
• Metropolitan Police Deputy Assistant Commissioner Steve Kavanagh has admitted the force did not have enough officers on duty to deal with the chaos that erupted on Monday night
• More than 1,000 arrests have now been made in London alone and more than 1,500 across England since the unrest began on Saturday
• A man has been arrested over an attack on a Malaysian student who was assaulted by rioters in East London and mugged by people who had initially appeared to be helping him
• More than 100,000 people have signed an online petition calling for anyone convicted of taking part in the riots to lose any benefits they receive – becoming the first such petition to be considered for a Commons debate
• The government has launched a website with advice to the public on how to cope with the unrest
• Saturday’s Premier League match between Tottenham and Everton at White Hart Lane has been postponed

The 22-year-old was held in west London and has been arrested on suspicion of murder, rioting and burglary.

Mr Bowes, of Haven Green, Ealing, is believed to have been attacked after remonstrating with some teenagers who were setting fire to two industrial bins on Spring Bridge Road.

Police officers were then pelted with missiles as they came to his aid.

‘Jumped on him’

Det Ch Insp McFarlane said: “This was a brutal incident that resulted in the senseless killing of an innocent man.

“I still need the assistance of the community who may have witnessed the attack on Richard, to come forward and provide information or images they may have recorded on mobile devices. This information could be crucial in catching his killer.”

Police have identified a “strong suspect” they wish to speak to

A witness, who gave his name as Jim and owns Big Jim’s Trims in Ealing, said rioters attacked Mr Bowes when he tried to put out a fire they had started in a supermarket bin near the Arcadia shopping centre.

Jim, 40, who owns hairdressing shops on The Green and Devonshire Road, said: “I went up to Spring Bridge Road to check on my other shop and saw him on the ground.

“The rioters had set a bin alight and then they jumped on him when he tried to put it out.”

Mr McFarlane said the examination of CCTV footage had provided police with a “strong suspect”.

“I know that on seeing these images of him people will be able to identify him.

“He had been in close proximity to the attack, recording the events on a mobile device.

“If you are the suspect in the CCTV, do the decent thing and give yourself up.”

Speaking on Thursday, when Mr Bowes was in a critical condition, his sister Anne Wilderspin, 73, from Derbyshire, said: “It was sort of unreal because you don’t think anything like that happens to a relative of yours.

Student Ashraf Rosli, who was mugged by rioters, says he ‘feels sorry’ for attackers

“I mean we’ve been horrified by the reports of the riots and what’s been going on.

“It was a shock and it’s still a bit unreal in a way.”

She had been hoping to be reunited with Mr Bowes, whom she had not seen for 30 years.

She said she was travelling to London to see her brother, who gave her away at her wedding. It is not known if she saw him before he died.

Also speaking on Thursday, Mayor of London Boris Johnson paid tribute to him: “There are many villains in this story but also many heroes and I want to pay particular tribute to Mr Bowes.

“But he has paid a terrible price. I am desperately sorry for him and his family.”

Car chase

Trevor Ellis, 26, of Brixton Hill, died after being found with bullet wounds in a car in Croydon, south London, on Monday night.

Police believe Mr Ellis and his friends were involved in an altercation with another group of nine people, resulting in a chase involving three cars. Mr Ellis was shot during the pursuit.

Haroon Jahan, Shazad Ali and Abdul Musavir died when they were hit by a car during the disorder

Haroon Jahan, 21, Shazad Ali, 30, and Abdul Musavir, 31, were struck as they stood in a crowd on the pavement in Winson Green, Birmingham, on Tuesday night. They were protecting property at the time.

On Thursday, West Midlands Police said two boys, aged 16 and 17, and a man, 26, had been arrested on suspicion of murder.

A 32-year-old man arrested on suspicion of murder on Wednesday has been bailed.

Four days of rioting across England broke out after a peaceful protest on Saturday in Tottenham, north London, over the fatal shooting of Mark Duggan, 29, by police.

Mr Duggan’s death is being investigated by the Independent Police Complaints Commission.

Source: BBC News