UK police seek charges against 77 entities over Grenfell Tower fire

London police announced Monday that they aim to bring criminal charges against 77 companies and individuals in connection with the 2017 Grenfell Tower fire that killed 72 people.

Detective Chief Superintendent Garry Moncrieff, the lead investigator, said his team of 220 detectives has gathered “strong evidence” of potential wrongdoing.

Police said they will send a series of evidence files to prosecutors later this year, seeking decisions on whether criminal trials should proceed.

The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) said it expects to make charging decisions by June 2027, the 10th anniversary of the disaster.

Police said the files will seek charging decisions for 57 individuals and 20 companies.

Moncrieff told reporters: “It’s our job to make sure that we do a fair, thorough, and comprehensive investigation, so that charging decisions can be taken, and that fairness runs throughout everything that we do.”

He added: “What I can say is that we have gathered strong evidence, and that evidence is sufficient, that we will be submitting files to the Crown Prosecution Service for them to make charging decisions.”

However, it emerged that no individual or company is likely to appear in court until next year at the earliest, and a trial before a jury is not expected before 2028, 11 years after the fire, or possibly later.

Offenses under consideration include corporate manslaughter, gross negligence manslaughter, fraud, and health and safety violations, police said. Misconduct in public office is also being considered, but police declined to say whether that includes any past or current political figures.

The Metropolitan Police investigation is examining criminal culpability for the fire and how the west London tower block came to be in a condition that allowed the blaze to spread so widely and quickly, with catastrophic consequences.

A public inquiry by retired judge Martin Moore-Bick concluded in 2024 that there were widespread failures in the construction industry, the local council, regulators, and central government. Moore-Bick said: “The simple truth is the deaths that occurred were all avoidable.”

The police investigation has cost £150 million so far, and a £2 million replica of the tower will be built so any jury can understand how the building looked before flames tore through it.

Grenfell United, representing survivors and bereaved families, said: “For our community, this is not news we meet with celebration. We meet it with caution, grief and determination. We have waited almost a decade for accountability.”

The Grenfell inquiry concluded that at the heart of the tragedy was the “systematic dishonesty” of multimillion-dollar companies whose products caused the fire to spread so rapidly.

Grenfell United said: “This was not a tragedy without cause. Those responsible must now be held to account. Our community cannot be expected to endure years more of delay.”

The group added: “The Ministry of Justice and the government must ensure the courts are properly resourced so that any prosecutions linked to Grenfell are heard swiftly. Justice delayed any further would be unacceptable.”