Northamptonshire Police say ‘no misconduct identified’ following review of viral clip in which uni student is pinned to the floor by officer
The ‘strikes’ seen being used upon a man lying on the floor are ‘approved and trained tactics’, according to Northamptonshire Police.
A CCTV clip taken on August 8, which went viral after being published on TikTok this month, showed part of a stop and search on the Barrack Road in Northampton during which a man is seen running away from an officer in plain clothes who then restrains him on the floor before a large police presence arrives on scene.
The man in the clip, Samuel Ackon, 22, alleges he was wrongly identified as a drug dealer when giving change to a homeless person before being chased and ‘assaulted’ by the officer and taken to a police station for an ‘enhanced search’.
Samuel, who said ‘they found nothing’, was questioned in relation to drug supply offences but was later released without charge.
Northamptonshire Police said they would review the footage and made a voluntary referral to the Independent Office of Police Conduct (IOPC).
In conclusion, the force has now said that the ‘strikes’ seen being used on the man were ‘approved and trained tactics’ and that no misconduct has been found.
A Northamptonshire Police spokeswoman said: “Following the receipt of a complaint regarding a Stop Search which took place in Barrack Road, Northampton, on August 8 this year, the force made a voluntary referral to the Independent Office of Police Conduct (IOPC).
“The IOPC reviewed the matter and determined that the case would be referred back to Northamptonshire Police’s Professional Standards Department to investigate.
“This investigation has involved the review of the officer’s body-worn video (BWV) from the start of the incident to the end, the officer’s use of force report submitted at the time, the BWV of the other officers present, and the control room logs.
“The BWV footage showed that the officer clearly identified himself as a police officer before the man ran off, resulting in a foot chase that lasted just over a minute. The officer repeatedly identified himself as a police officer during the pursuit.
“Once the man was caught, he did not initially follow the instruction to remove his hands from under his chest resulting in three strikes to his back and right shoulder, which ceased as soon as he complied.
“The strikes used are approved and trained tactics to reinforce an instruction and were deemed to be proportionate in this case as upon review of the BWV footage, the officer is clearly heard giving clear commands.”
Police say the location of the incident is an area where intelligence suggests drug dealing and knife crime takes place, which led the officer to believe there was possibility of the suspect potentially concealing a knife.
The spokeswoman continued: “The BWV footage also showed the officer giving the man his name and explaining what power and grounds the stop search was conducted on, and the man being taken to a police station for a lawful, proportionate and respectful enhanced search.
“At this point in the investigation therefore, the force has not identified any misconduct.
“We have attempted to contact Mr. Ackon through his solicitors to discuss his complaint and would encourage him to engage with us so we can invite him in to view all of the body-worn video footage, explain our initial findings in more detail, and listen to any concerns he wants to raise.
“Northamptonshire Police is committed to working with the community to ensure that the force uses stop and search powers in an effective and ethical way, and are accountable and open to scrutiny in the use of these powers through the Use of Powers Community Scrutiny Panel.”
In a joint statement, Northamptonshire Rights and Equality Council and StopWatch say the police account differs ‘markedly’ to Samuel’s which states that he ran because he saw ‘a figure running towards me’ of ‘a white man in a black hoodie’.
Samuel, who was left with bruised ribs, says he showed no resistance while lying on the ground.
A spokesperson for Northamptonshire Rights and Equality Council and StopWatch said: “It raises serious concerns about accountability, disproportionate use of force, and whether racial profiling played a role.”
Samuel's solicitor, Miriam Altaf, told the BBC they are ‘awaiting copies of all body worn video and a response to our complaint from Northamptonshire Police before we accept any of the comments from the police’.