Police 'deeply sorry' to man in his 80s who was injured during Potton arrest

Malcolm Emery, 81, was arrested on suspicion of assaulting an emergency worker after an officer suffered a head injury during an altercation at about 5am.

He had initially approached the attending officers holding a wooden implement, after they had mistakenly looked through his window while responding to an unrelated incident.

The matter was voluntarily referred to the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC).

Mr Emery informed BBC News that he saw a face looking through his window whilst he was watching TV.

He told the BBC: "I didn't know what I was going to be confronted with", revealing that he grabbed the "dog walking stick" and went to see what was happening.

He added: "They bunged me in there [the police van] handcuffed, oh dear it hurt.

"How can you imagine police doing that? They ripped my bloody arms about. I couldn't make out what was going on."

Deputy Chief Constable Trevor Rodenhurst said: “I wanted to say how deeply sorry we are to everyone involved in this incident, which appears to have begun with a simple case of a mistaken address but quickly escalated to a point where a man in his 80s has received injuries to his arms, as a result of being handcuffed, and an officer has suffered a head injury.

“We have been keen to progress this investigation as swiftly as possible for all parties. I have updated the man’s family today to let them know he will face no further action in relation to the alleged assault as, after reviewing the evidence, we are content that the officer's injuries were not caused by an intentional act. I have also apologised for what happened and the injuries he suffered.

“While it is important we allow any review by the IOPC to be carried out before making any further comment, it is also right that we acknowledge where we have got things wrong and there were opportunities to de-escalate this situation which were not taken.

“We're continuing to offer support to the officer who was injured, as well as reviewing the footage of the incident to take on any immediate learning around dealing with vulnerable people.”