'Wave a bus down' if you're being harassed or handcuffed by the police?
Women who fear a male police officer might not be genuine should call 999 or “shout out to a passer-by, run into a house or wave a bus down”, the Metropolitan Police Service has advised in the aftermath of the Sarah Everard case.
The advice comes amid mounting pressure from the public and MPs for the Met to address how they will deal with violence against women after ex-Met officer Wayne Couzens was on Thursday
sentenced to die behind bars, and amid calls for commission Cressida Dick to resign.
A message on the Met’s website says it is “unusual for a single plain clothes police officer” to engage with any member of the public, and adds that if you don't see other officers arrive later then you can expect to ask the lone officer questions such as “where are your colleagues?” and “why are you here?”.
https://twitter.com/BellRibeiroAddy/status/1443844739825086467
https://twitter.com/WEP_UK/status/1443830069152133134
https://twitter.com/AyoCaesar/status/1443840786513211395
https://twitter.com/JimMFelton/status/1443837667611979793
However, if you think you are in imminent danger then you should seek assistance by “shouting out to a passer-by, running into a house, knocking on a door, waving a bus down, or if you are in the position to do so calling 999”.
Policing Minister Kit Kit Malthouse reiterated the advice on
Sky News on Friday, saying: "If anybody has any doubts about that police officer, they should question the officer on what they're doing and if there are any doubts they should ask to speak to the control room on that officer's radio or call 999... that is the devastating consequence of this awful man's actions."
The advice hasn't been well received in the wake of the Everard case, where a court was told how Couzens used his Police ID and handcuffs to kidnap the marketing executive and that he was previously known to some officers as "the rapist".
https://twitter.com/NickTorfaen/status/1443695470363226117
Speaking on BBC Radio 4’s
The World At One, Chief Inspector of Constabulary Sir Tom Winsor said that Couzens also “had allegedly a reputation in terms of drug abuse, extreme pornography and other offences of this kind”.
Winsor said the Independent Office for Police Conduct was investigating what other officers knew about Couzens following his conviction, adding that the force has a "culture of protection", where officers tend not to report other police officials.
Related links:
