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FieldDetails
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Clip 1
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BoroughTower Hamlets
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Date of Meeting4th June 2025
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Category of MaterialStop and Search form 
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Location of Incident
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Percieved Ethnicity Mixed race (white and Black) but he self ID'ed as white
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Incident DescriptionTSG stop of an uninsured vehicle where driver also suspected to have drugs
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Was Body-Worn Video Viewed?Yes
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GOWISELY ComplianceCompliant
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Use of HandcuffsYes/compliant
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Was a Taser Used?No
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Was the Individual Strip-Searched?Yes at Bethnal Green station
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Object Found?Yes - empty drugs bag and allegedly a small amount of cannabis in the car (none shown)
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Did Object Match Suspicion?Yes
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Vulnerabilities Observed?Yes - He said he was dyslexic and had mental health issues
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Officer Communication
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Panel Feedback on Officer BehaviorOfficer behaviour escalated the situation
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Overall Panel Scrutiny Assessment (RAG)
Red
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Panel Assessment As an overview, I would say this search appeared racialised. The suspect looks mixed race. He told officers he is white but he certainly does not look it. The way he was treated by officers, particularly them claiming he was aggressive towards them and the disproportionality of the whole encounter gives me serious concerns that race played a factor. Of further concern are the following:

1. The written record is wrong and I have concerns it is fabricated. The officer stated that on speaking with the subject, "he became obstructive and began shouting". That is not shown on the footage and does not reflect the situation at all. The suspect was polite and cooperative throughout. It also states the person began "looking from side to side" and appeared nervous, that is also not shown on the footage. It is well known that police bias results in men of colour being considered to be more aggressive than they are.

2. During the search, the grounds for the stop and search were given as "firstly, vehicle not showing as insured, when I spoke to you, you were not being cooperative with me, you put your hands in the pockets, you don't want us near the car and I think you have drugs in it, you seem nervous." It must be noted the suspect clearly said, I don't mind you searching the car. I do not consider it is reasonable to assume someone is carrying drugs because their car is not insured. I think it is really weak to assume someone has drugs because they put their hands in their pockets and, as noted above, the suspect was cooperative and didn't seem nervous. Again I must question whether race played a factor in this officer's interpretation of the situation. Listing weak grounds does not amount to one strong ground.

3. The suspect was handcuffed for no good reason. He was not aggressive, obstructive or seeking to abscond. The suspect said when he was led into the van that the handcuffs were too tight. The skin was visibly wrinkled around the wrist. The officer acknowledged he put it on badly but said it was because the person's hand was at a funny angle. That is obviously the fault and responsibility of the handcuffing officer.

4. Despite only finding an empty drugs bag, officers decided to put the suspect in the van, check his shoes, do a drugs swab and subject him to a strip search. They said they suspected he might have been driving under the influence because of the size of his pupils, a point not raised beforehand and in any way negated by the swab being negative. The officers said they checked his shoes because he delayed in pulling over when they stopped him. The officers acknowledged he pulled over when they put their lights on but not when he saw them. It is unreasonable to expect drivers to pull over just because they see a police van...

5. The suspect said he had mental health problems and was going to pick up his "little" nephew. At no point did officers acknowledge this, including offering to tell the nephew, who may have been a minor, that his cousin had been detained and would be some time.

6. The BWV cut off before the strip search and when the suspect entered the police station. I am unclear why.

In summary, this was a disproportionate and very poor encounter. The suspect was pulled over for driving an uninsured car and things somehow escalated until he was being taken to the police station for a strip search. This is despite nothing of any significance being found and a drug swab coming up negative. The officers seemed to come up with new excuses, such as referencing his pupils and saying the car smelled of cannabis, which they didn't say initially. Despite the person remaining cooperative throughout, they kept him in cuffs for a lengthy period of time (the full clip was over 41 minutes) with no real justification.
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Category of Recommendations
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MPS Action Taken
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FieldDetails
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Clip 1
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BoroughTower Hamlets
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Date of Meeting4th June 2025
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Category of MaterialStop and Search form 
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Location of Incident
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Percieved Ethnicity South Asian
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Incident DescriptionSuspect seen doing balloons
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Was Body-Worn Video Viewed?Yes
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GOWISELY ComplianceI don't think she covered "E" (Entitlement) but she did later asked if he wanted a copy of the search record
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Use of HandcuffsNo
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Was a Taser Used?No
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Was the Individual Strip-Searched?No
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Object Found?Yes - Nitrous oxide canisters and balloons
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Did Object Match Suspicion?Yes
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Vulnerabilities Observed?Yes - He said he needed to sit down as he can't stand for long and the officer allowed that. He also said he's on licence
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Officer CommunicationEffective and respectful
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Panel Feedback on Officer BehaviorOfficer was polite and acknowledged vulnerabilities. She let him sit in the car when he was cold. Panel assessed officer behaviour deescalated the situation. The person was also calm so it remained calm throughout. Officer also asked for ethnicity but footage cut off.
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Overall Panel Scrutiny Assessment (RAG)
Green
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Panel Assessment The officer had a good tone and showed appropriate care to the person when he said he needed to sit down. I though she was polite and professional throughout. My only "negative" is that the BWV cut off prematurely. Otherwise it was good
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Category of RecommendationsBest practice feedback (informal)
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MPS Action Taken
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