After working as an air steward, Walters joined the Metropolitan Police Service in September 1993 and was posted to Ilford in February 1994.

[1] On 18 April 1995, Walters responded to reports of a domestic disturbance at a flat in Empress Avenue, Ilford, with his colleague Police Constable Derek Shepherd, whom he had partnered in the job for the eighteen months since he entered service.

As the suspects attempted to escape, one produced a Smith & Wesson handgun and shot Walters in the chest as he was tackled by the officer.

In a separate trial, the two other men who escaped the scene, and a woman, were convicted of lesser charges.

[3] Walters' colleague Derek Shepherd returned to service ten months after the shooting, having suffered from stress, contributing to the breakdown of his marriage.