Police watchdog wants witnesses to incident were woman was wrongly accused of fare evasion
The police watchdog is appealing for witnesses who saw the arrest of a woman in front of her child after wrongly being accused of fare evasion.
A video, filmed in Whitehorse Road, Croydon on July 21, shows the woman’s young son in tears as his mum is handcuffed by police.
Last week, the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) confirmed it had opened an investigation into the incident.
IOPC regional director Mel Palmer said: “We’re aware that the incident took place in public in front of several people, some of whom recorded the incident on their phones.
“We know that footage widely shared on social media does not show the full incident and we are working to piece together all of the circumstances surrounding the arrest.
“Therefore, it’s important that we speak with anyone who witnessed any part of this incident and that we gather all relevant footage that may assist our investigation.
“We also want to hear from any commuters who were on the 157 bus to Morden on the day, when it stopped on Whitehorse Road shortly after 11am.”
The IOPC are urging anyone who witnessed the incident to email whitehorseroad@policeconduct.
The IOPC received a “complaint referral” from the Met on July 24. The complaint, which was made by a family member on the woman’s behalf, alleged that she was racially profiled and was verbally abused by an officer.
The Met said the woman involved in this incident was asked to show her paid fare as she got off the bus, but did not do so.
When she continued to try to walk away she was arrested on suspicion of fare evasion, and handcuffed.
She was later let go and her handcuffs were removed after officers confirmed her fare was valid.
(Picture: The Met)
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