Police warned of 'serious questions' over death of bailed rapist

The Metropolitan Police face "serious questions" over the death of a convicted rapist who is believed to have killed his parents after being granted bail, the family's lawyer has said.

The body of Ashraf Amrani, 30, was discovered on a first-floor roof in Westbourne Park Road, west London, on Friday February 13.

His parents Hassan, 72, and 59-year-old Zohra were later found dead at their home in the same street when police went to inform them of their son's death.

At a pre-inquest review at Westminster Coroner's Court in London, assistant coroner Dr Shirley Radcliffe said the "tragic incident" happened while Ashraf Amrani was out on licence after serving a prison sentence.

He had been arrested on suspicion of affray on February 10 after allegedly threatening a man with a knife, she said.

Amrani began vomiting while in police custody and was transferred to St Mary's Hospital where he admitted he had taken ecstasy, the hearing was told.

It was there that the registered sex offender was granted street bail - when a suspect is bailed without being taken to a police station - and he left hospital on February 11.

James Mehigan, representing Mr and Mrs Amrani's daughter Tofha, Ashraf's sister, told the hearing: "This is a sex offender, on the sex offender's register, on licence. He was accused of committing a relatively serious violent offence and admitted taking drugs, both in breach of his licence.

"There are serious questions as to why he was not recalled (to prison) as well as why he was given bail."

An investigation by the police watchdog, the Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC), is focused on the decision to grant street bail to Amrani, the hearing was told.

Heather Oliver, representing the Metropolitan Police, said the inquest should consider whether there were "missed opportunities" to report concerns about Amrani's "ongoing volatility" before February 10.

A court official confirmed that in June 2010, Amrani had been jailed for seven years and two months after being found guilty of rape at Southwark Crown Court.

A post-mortem examination gave his cause of death as multiple injuries, police said.

Tests revealed Mrs Amrani died from "blunt force trauma to the head and strangulation injuries", while her husband was killed by "laceration incised wounds to the abdomen", according to reports.

The hearing was adjourned for a further pre-inquest review on February 11.