Man rubbishes claim that mother arrested by Met Police in row over bus fare was ‘abusive’ to officers amid mounting backlash at Scotland Yard over shocking video
- Video was filmed in Croydon, south London, on Friday and sparked disgust
- Are you the woman in the film or know her? E-mail: [email protected]
A mother arrested in front of her son after she had wrongly been accused of bus fare evasion was not being abusive, a witness said – contradicting the police account.
Video footage of the mother shouting as two male Metropolitan Police officers held her arms in Croydon, south London, on Friday as her tearful child watched provoked criticism on social media.
The woman was later de-arrested when it was confirmed that she had paid for her ticket.
Yesterday the Met referred itself to the Independent Office for Police Conduct due to the ‘level of public concern’.
But heating engineer Clement Benjamin, 53, who filed the incident told the Mirror: ‘At no point while I was there, did I see her being abusive.
‘When they were twisting her arm, she was screaming, that’s not abusive. They were causing her pain.
‘She wanted to get to her son as most parents would. The son was just screaming. It was disgusting, it really was.’
Are you the woman in the film or know her? E-mail: [email protected]
Vauxhall Labour MP Florence Eshalomi called the video ‘distressing’ and said she has raised it with London Mayor Sadiq Khan, as others criticised the police on social media.
The bus worker, who called himself Joe, told LBC’s Nick Ferrari this morning: ‘The inspector told her to please show the pass and she started being abusive to the inspector.
‘And when the police asked her to show the pass, she started abusing the police as well.
‘She could have just shown the pass and walked away – and that would have been the end of the matter.’
Mr Twist said he understood the ‘significant public concern’ that the video has generated and so wanted to be ‘transparent’ about the role of the police in the incident.
He said officers had joined TFL inspectors on a pre-planned inspection in Croydon on Friday.
The officials were checking tickets of passengers as they got off a bus and anyone without a valid ticket was being issued with a penalty fare.
A woman who was arrested after wrongly being accused of bus fare evasion had repeatedly refused to show her ticket, police claimed
Assistant Commissioner Twist insisted officers would only become involved when an individual refuses to provide their details or someone tries to leave when challenged.
‘The woman involved in this incident was asked to provide her ticket as she got off the bus, but did not do so,’ he said.
‘She was spoken to by a TfL inspector, then by a PCSO and finally by a police officer.
‘She continued to try to walk away and did not provide her ticket for inspection,
‘She was arrested on suspicion of fare evasion and was handcuffed.
‘When officers were able to take her ticket from her so that the TfL inspectors could check it, they were able to confirm it was valid.
‘She was immediately de-arrested and her handcuffs were removed.
‘Throughout the incident, the child was comforted by a PCSO who immediately recognised his distress.
‘Anyone seeing how upset he was would be moved by this, and we regret any impact it may have on him.’
‘We recognise that the use of handcuffs can be a cause of concern, particularly given the context of this incident and the type of offence involved, but when a person is trying to physically leave an incident it is an option officers can consider.
‘All uses of force must be proportionate and necessary in the circumstances.’
He added: ‘An initial review of the officers’ actions did not identify any conduct matters but we will reflect on it carefully, in discussion with communities locally, to urgently identify any opportunities to do things differently.
‘Given the level of community concern generated we believe it is in the public interest to voluntarily refer the matter to the Independent Office for Police Conduct to review.’
In response to the video, the force has defended the officers’ actions, stating that the woman was thought to have not paid her bus fare
Footage posted online showed the woman shouting, ‘What the hell?’ and ‘What the f*** is going on?’ while handcuffed, as two male officers held her arms.
She repeatedly asked one of the officers to let go and said, ‘I haven’t done anything wrong’, while a member of the public filmed what was happening and asked why she was being arrested.
Detective Chief Superintendent Christina Jessah had earlier said: ‘We know that this is a distressing video to watch, even more so as a child is seen to be visibly upset by the way in which his mother has been apprehended. We regret the upset that has been caused to the child.
‘A PCSO (police community support officer) can be seen comforting the child; however, we know that this does not take away from the impact that this will have on him.
‘We are seeking to make contact with the female in question to understand the wider circumstances.
‘Given the level of public concern we will ask the Independent Office for Police Conduct to review the circumstances shown in the video clip.
‘We are currently working with the local senior police teams and Transport for London.’
Writing on Twitter, Ms Eshalomi said: ‘There is a distressing video circulating online with a woman handcuffed in front of her young son.
‘Please be careful sharing this online to help protect this young boy who is very traumatised by the situation.
‘Myself and other colleagues have raised this with the Mayor of London.’
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