Death of Jack Avery

Sgt. Jack William Avery (5 November 1911 – 6 July 1940) was a British War Reserve Constable who was murdered in Hyde Park, London, having served less than one year with the Metropolitan Police Service.

Jack Avery
Born	Jack William Avery 5 November 1911[1] Bromley, London, England
Died	6 July 1940 (aged 28) St. Mary's Hospital, London, England, U.K.
Cause of death	stabbing
Police career
Department	Metropolitan Police Service
Rank	Sergeant
Badge no.	890A

On 5 July, Sgt. Avery was advised by a member of the public that Frank Stephen Cobbett was acting suspiciously. Avery approached Cobbett, who was lying on the grass and writing on a piece of paper, and took the paper from him. Avery returned the paper to Cobbett, who stabbed the officer in the groin or upper thigh with a carving knife. Avery died the next day.^[2]

Cobbett, a 42-year-old homeless labourer, was originally sentenced to death by Mr. Justice Atkinson, even though the jury strongly recommended mercy because of his "low mentality."^[3] After an appeal, Cobbett served 15 years' penal servitude for manslaughter instead.^[4][5]

In 2007, Ian Blair, then Metropolitan Police Commissioner, unveiled a memorial to Avery in Hyde Park, close to the place where he was attacked.^[6]

See also

• List of British police officers killed in the line of duty