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Last month, a 34-year-old mixed race man was shot three times by Metropolitan Police firearms officers outside his front door.

It was a shockingly violent end to an incident which had initially shown no sign of taking such a dramatic turn.

The use of deadly force by police on British streets is extremely rare - there were only two operations where firearms were discharged between 2013-14.

But the shooting, on a housing estate on the edge of Brixton and Clapham in South London, attracted little in the way of media attention at the time.

(Image: Daily Mirror)

Today, the Mirror can reveal his identity to be Nathaniel Brophy, a father and former delivery driver described as "quiet", "introverted" and "polite".

He was shot three times by police marksmen; once in the right femur, once through the bowel and another in the back.

He required three operations to save his life and remains in a serious condition in King’s College Hospital, under 24-hour police guard according to his family.

His father Patrice Duval, 52, says it has been touch and go whether he would survive ever since.

An infection in the exit wound caused by the third bullet has added to complications.

As Nathaniel continues to recover, his family say the situation could have been defused without shots being fired.

(Image: Jay Elwes)

It is understood Nathaniel had lived at Tilson Gardens in Lambeth for around seven years, renting it from Metropolitan, one of the country’s largest housing associations.

His problems started when he suffered a brain injury in 2010 which left him with occasional speech difficulties and partial paralysis in his hand.

After losing his job, he began to run into arrears on his flat and was eventually evicted, his family say.

But it is understood on the morning of Friday, August 21, he was able to re-enter his property because the locks had not been changed.

Scotland Yard says the incident began when unarmed officers escorted housing officials to an address at Tilson Gardens as part of a “pre-planned eviction”.

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At around 9.45am, they gained entry to the property and a man was seen emerging from one of the rooms.

A spokesman said officers were “threatened by the suspect” who was “believed to be in possession of a firearm”.

The officers withdrew and the firearms squad were called.

A seven-hour siege unfolded, during which the third-floor flat was surrounded by police marksmen and dozens of residents were evacuated.

Nathaniel Brophy was shot as he came out of the front door of his flat at around 4.45pm.

As a matter of course, the Independent Police Complaints Commission has been asked to investigate.

They say a non-police issue firearm was recovered from the scene - understood to be a 0.177 calibre air pistol.

They have also downloaded footage from CCTV cameras in the area and, significantly, from the body cameras worn by officers during the siege.

Mr Duval, who is himself battling cancer, says so far he has not been shown any footage or given any briefing by the IPCC as to what happened.

(Image: Daily Mirror)

For their part, the IPCC says all requests to meet with the family via their solicitors have gone unanswered.

Mr Duval says his son was "never in a gang", was not “a dangerous criminal” and claimed the siege would have ended peacefully if he had been able to negotiate with his son.

He added that his family is not anti-police and has two close relatives who are serving officers in the Met.

“Nathaniel’s told me ‘Dad, I never thought I was going to get shot’,” said Mr Duval.

“Yes, he shouldn’t have gone back to the flat - I know that.

“But he just wanted to get his stuff.

“Somebody has seen he got back into the property and the housing officers came to the door.

“They told him he had no right to be there. He said ‘I’m taking my stuff - you’re not throwing me out.”

Mr Duval says Nathaniel had been struggling to support himself since his head injury.

“That’s where it all went wrong,” he said.

“He lost his job, his relationship and eventually his house.

"I helped him out from time to time but he was too proud.

"He ended up by himself and I think he felt abandoned.”

Nathaniel Brophy has been arrested on suspicion of possession of a firearm, or imitation firearm, with intent to cause fear of violence.

The IPCCC investigation is ongoing.

Commissioner Jennifer Izekor said: “I would like to reassure the community in Clapham and the wider public that the IPCC will be conducting a thorough and comprehensive investigation into the events surrounding the shooting.

“Our investigators have already gathered statements from officers involved, carried out house-to-house enquiries, trawled the local area for CCTV and will now being reviewing statements and video footage to establish the events of that day.

“The IPCC has engaged with key community members and is updating them on the progress of the investigation. We have also engaged with the injured man’s family and will continue to do so.”