WEST MIDLANDS Police has apologised for the behaviour of one of its officers who appeared in a video challenging a man on his way to work.
The video of the incident which unfolded outside Dorridge railway station on Wednesday (January 27) went viral after it was uploaded to social media.
In it, a male officer threatens to arrest the man when he refuses to provide his name and calls him an idiot.
The man filmed what unfolded over two-and-a-half minutes, before his phone was apparently seized at the end of the video, as he was detained.
As the footage begins, a male officer accompanied with a female colleague can be seen in a marked car, on the street outside the station.
The male officer asked the man what he was ‘up to’ to which the male replied he was going to work.
Under the current Covid rules, people are allowed to travel for work if they cannot work from home.
Following the incident West Midlands Police said: “We’ve reviewed video footage of one of our officers challenging a man near Dorridge train station, Solihull yesterday morning.
“It’s clear that the officer’s conduct fell far below what we would expect.
“His manner was not acceptable, not the face of West Midlands Police, and we will deal with the situation.
“The officer has accepted his behaviour was not up to our high standards and we will address this as part of an action plan for his learning and development.
“The officer was with a colleague on patrols in Solihull and part of their duties was ensuring people are adhering to Covid restrictions.
“The man explained he was heading to work − that’s clearly a justifiable reason to be out and about and there was no suspicion he had committed any offences.
“As such, he should not have been challenged in the way he was.
“We are sorry.”
