A West Midlands Police officer has been charged with three assaults which allegedly took place during separate incidents in Birmingham over four days.
The investigations were promoted after a partial clip of the officer’s interaction with a suspect was widely shared on social media.
The IOPC has said that the charges are in connection with a series of ongoing investigations into allegations of ‘excessive use’ of force by police officers in the city earlier this year.
The 29-year-old officer has been charged with common assaults concerning the detention of a male at Newtown on 21 April; the stop and search of a man at Aston on 20 April; and the stop and search of another man at Handsworth on 23 April.
The IOPC said that they began an independent investigation into the circumstances of the incident at Newtown following a voluntary referral from West Midlands Police on 30 April.
A spokesperson for the IOPC said:
‘Our investigations in respect of the incidents at Aston and Handsworth followed complaints referred to us in May.
‘We passed files of evidence from our enquiries to the Crown Prosecution Service which has now authorised the charges’.
The officer, who is based in Birmingham, will make his first appearance before Coventry Magistrates Court on 18 November. He is currently suspended from duties.
Sarah Hammond, Deputy Chief Crown Prosecutor of CPS West Midlands, said:
“The CPS has authorised the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) to charge Declan Jones, a West Midlands Police Officer, with three counts of common assault against three complainants.
“The allegations relate to incidents which took place between 20 and 23 April 2020.
“This decision was made following careful consideration of the evidence presented to us by the IOPC.
“The Crown Prosecution Service reminds all concerned that criminal proceedings against [the officer] are now active and that he has a right to a fair trial. It is extremely important that there should be no reporting, commentary or sharing of information online which could in any way prejudice these proceedings.”
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