Driver films police officer threatening to smash his car window and telling him ‘you’re getting a ticket for something’ during traffic stop
- A police officer has been accused of being heavy-handed following a traffic stop
- A motorist claimed the Dorset Police officer was aggressive during the stop
- The driver was pulled over by police in Bournemouth, Dorset on October 30
- The motorist filmed the incident and said he will complain about the officer
- Local Police and Crime Commissioner said there were ‘two sides to every story’ and the officer’s body-camera would be reviewed
A motorist has said he was left ‘shaken’ after a police officer threatened to smash his car window during ‘a simple traffic stop’.
The Dorset Police officer pulled over the man’s car in Bournemouth as he suspected the colour of the vehicle did not match DVLA records.
During the video, the officer claimed the driver was ‘non-compliant’ and arrested him after warning him ‘you’re going to get a ticket.’
A motorist has said he was left shaken after a police officer threatened to break the window of his car with a baton during a ‘routine traffic stop’
A motorist has said he was left ‘shaken’ following his arrest and de-arrest during a routine traffic stop in Bournemouth, Dorset on October 30
The driver first asked the officer ‘could you please remove your hands from my car, please’. ‘Please do not touch my car.’
The officer responded: ‘If you don’t open the door I’m going to smash it.’
Approaching the car with his baton drawn the officer warns: ‘If you don’t open the window and shut the car off, and do as you’re told…’
The police man then begins counting and warns him that he is being video and audio recorded.
The motorist claims ‘there is no need for the baton’, prompting the officer to warn the driver that he was at risk of being ‘lifted’.
As the motorist explains to the officer about the colour change in the car, he said ‘you’re a police officer, you should know that’.
The officer shakes his head as he returns the baton to its holster and said: ‘You’re getting a ticket for something.’
The driver responded: ‘Sorry, you’re finding something to ticket me for.’
The officer and the man argued during the traffic stop which lasted more than 10 minutes
The officer claimed the driver was being ‘aggressive’ and obstructed him during the stop
During the conversation, the driver tells the officer ‘there’s no need to be aggressive’. The officer replied: ‘The reason I’m being aggressive is because you are not doing as you are told. I don’t know if you are going to floor it and run me down. You are turning a simple traffic stop into a big issue. You are going to get arrested in a second for obstructing police and for driving matters.’
As he is being handcuffed, the man yelps in pain and says: ‘There’s no need to hurt me like that, mate.’ He then asks the officer to calm down.
The officer tells the man to ‘calm down’ and then adds: ‘We are allowed to use force, to use reasonable force to detain you.’
The officer said: ‘I want to make the situation safe and I want to go home at the end of the day.’ He accuses the driver of having a ‘major attitude’. He said the driver was ‘non-compliant’ throughout the stop.
The man is then read this rights as he is arrested. A short time later he is de-arrested.
The man told the BBC that the officer was ‘extremely aggressive’ and was treated ‘like a naughty child’.
He said: ‘I’ve always respected the police but this incident has definitely left me shaken up, and I no longer know who I can trust.’
Martyn Underhill, Police and Crime Commissioner for Dorset has said he will meet the motorist, who did not wish to reveal his identity. The PCC said ‘there are two sides to every story’ and that the officer’s body-worn camera would be reviewed.
He said: ‘Some of the issues in that video do concern me but I must stress my role is not to intervene and hold police to account until their processes are finished.’
Dorset Police said: ‘Our Professional Standards Department is proactively reviewing the incident, which includes not just the footage circulating online but also other evidence of the circumstances, including the officer’s body worn video, to understand events leading up to the interaction, so we can assess the full picture.
‘Once that has been done, a decision on appropriate action will then be taken.’
MailOnline has approached Dorset Police and the Police and Crime Commissioner’s office for an update on the incident.