IOPC investigation finds South Wales Police use of restraint was proportionate prior to the death of a man

An Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) investigation has found that restraint used by South Wales Police officers on Leighton Jones, before he sadly died, was reasonable.

Following a three-day inquest at Pontypridd Coroner’s Court, a jury has today, Wednesday, returned a narrative outcome. Mr Jones’s cause of death was given as cocaine toxicity.

We started an investigation in June 2021 after we received a mandatory referral from South Wales Police. We looked at police contact with Mr Jones prior to his death, whether any force used by the officers was reasonable, justified and proportionate in the circumstances, and if there was any indication that police may have caused or contributed to Mr Jones’ death. Issuing our investigation findings has awaited the end of the inquest.

We examined police interaction with Mr Jones on 19 June 2021, after officers had responded to an incident in the Pentwyn area of Cardiff. Police located Mr Jones on a grass verge, who appeared to be intoxicated. Due to his behaviour, officers restrained him by applying handcuffs intending to return Mr Jones to his nearby home address. Mr Jones was not arrested during the incident. He admitted to taking cocaine and cannabis and became unwell, leading officers to call an ambulance. Despite medical assistance, Mr Jones died at the scene. Toxicology results showed a high concentration of cocaine in Mr Jones’s blood.  

IOPC Director for Wales David Ford said: “My thoughts and condolences go to Mr Jones’s family, and everyone affected by his death. Our role was to examine all of the circumstances surrounding Mr Jones’s death including the actions of the police officers involved, with the inquest determining how Mr Jones died. 

“Having reviewed the evidence carefully, we acknowledge that officers were faced with a challenging situation and tried to assist Mr Jones and keep him safe until paramedics arrived. He was behaving erratically in a public place and he told officers he had injured his leg. Officers initially applied handcuffs to restrain Mr Jones due to the risk he might hurt himself, or cause harm to a member of the public. Mr Jones was placed in the recovery position by officers, and his breathing was monitored until an ambulance arrived. 

“Following completion of our investigation in June 2022, we found the officers’ actions to be reasonable and proportionate. We found no indication that the restraint used by police contributed to the death of Mr Jones. We provided his family with the detail of our findings and submitted our report to the coroner to assist with the inquest.”

During the course of our investigation, we carried out house to house enquiries with several witnesses providing statements. We obtained other witness accounts from police officers and police staff. We analysed CCTV footage, officers’ body-worn video and mobile phone footage from members of the public, along with radio and telephone transmissions and a use of force expert’s report.