Complaint of use of excess force - British Transport Police, July 2016

On 22 July 2016 British Transport Police received a complaint regarding their arrest of a man at London Bridge station the night before. The complaint contained allegations that the man had been arrested without good reason or explanation, and that officers used excessive force, which included the use of handcuffs, leg restraints and a spit-hood. The complainant also said that the man was subjected to mistreatment that was discriminatory and motivated by factors relating to his race. It was also stated that officers involved in the matter concocted a false account of events in an attempt to justify their actions, while officers not directly involved but present during these events failed to report the misconduct of their colleagues.

Our investigators reviewed CCTV footage, together with footage of the incident which had been uploaded online. We conducted a witness appeal and obtained statements from a number of railway company employees and a member of the public. We also obtained full accounts from all of the police officers involved in the incident. We considered the actions of the officers in line with their training, policy and procedures. We also analysed the stop and search records of the officers involved in the incident, together with records relating to their previous uses of force.

Our investigation found the use of force by the officers was necessary, justified and proportionate in the circumstances. Our investigation found no evidence indicating that the actions of the officers were motivated by factors relating to race, or that the officers colluded and concocted a false account of events.

We did not uphold any of the complaints made.