Police Inspector Slammed For ‘Boastful’ Tweet Showing Video Of Moment He Tackled Cycling Thief

A police inspector’s “boast” on social media about an arrest that saw a thief crashing headfirst into the road after being deliberately knocked off a bike has divided opinion. While some have praised the Hammersmith and Fulham officer for using a van door to stop the offender in an unconventional arrest, others have branded it “disgraceful conduct” that should be investigated by the Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC).

Inspector Richard Berns pinned a tweet showing video of the arrest on Twitter last week, prompted more than 170 people to comment. Berns wrote in an accompanying caption: “This criminal tried to get away, but thanks to the driving of A/PS Field & A (small + proportionate) nudge from me, he got 28 weeks instead.”

http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/entry/police-inspector-slammed_uk_5964801ce4b09b587d618bbd?utm_hp_ref=uk

Video on link

His method of stopping the thief was quite ingenious.....had the thief been badly injured ......well maybe he shouldn't be breaking the law and trying to flee.

Posting the video and entering into online banter about this is where the police have come unstuck imo.

Syl wrote:His method of stopping the thief was quite ingenious.....had the thief been badly injured ......well maybe he shouldn't be breaking the law and trying to flee.

Posting the video and entering into online banter about this is where the police have come unstuck imo.

Ah but if he had not been stopped by the Police. Would he have then caused an accident, running into pedestrians for example, in his haste to get away?

I agree he should not have bragged about it.

Thorin wrote:

Syl wrote:His method of stopping the thief was quite ingenious.....had the thief been badly injured ......well maybe he shouldn't be breaking the law and trying to flee.

Posting the video and entering into online banter about this is where the police have come unstuck imo.

Ah but if he had not been stopped by the Police, would he have then caused an accident, running into pedestrians for example, in his haste to get away?

I agree he should not have bragged about it.

Yep, he could have badly injured others, I think the police did what they had to do in the circumstances.
They were foolish to put the video out.....someone somewhere will always want to criticise anything that is slightly un pc......that was their mistake.

Syl wrote:

Thorin wrote:


Ah but if he had not been stopped by the Police, would he have then caused an accident, running into pedestrians for example, in his haste to get away?

I agree he should not have bragged about it.

Yep, he could have badly injured others, I think the police did what they had to do in the circumstances.
They were foolish to put the video out.....someone somewhere will always want to criticise anything that is slightly un pc......that was their mistake.

Very much agree Syl

I didn't see where the victim, Nedd, did anything criminal.

Original Quill wrote:I didn't see where the victim, Nedd, did anything criminal.

Do you personally see what the criminal does in millions of crimes?

The fact the criminal was sentenced to 28 weeks is a tad of a give away

Thorin wrote:

Original Quill wrote:I didn't see where the victim, Nedd, did anything criminal.

The fact the criminal was sentenced to 28 weeks is a tad of a give away

But as I read the story, they didn't know that at the time he was apprehended. So that's ex post facto reasoning. Suppose they had nailed the wrong guy?

I only ask because y'all are using the same reasoning that the NRA uses to peddle it's guns in America: the only guy who will be hurt is the bad guy. But...how do you know before the fact?

Original Quill wrote:

Thorin wrote:

The fact the criminal was sentenced to 28 weeks is a tad of a give away

But as I read the story, they didn't know that at the time he was apprehended.  So that's ex post facto reasoning.  Suppose they had nailed the wrong guy?

I only ask because y'all are using the same reasoning that the NRA uses to peddle it's guns in America: the only guy who will be hurt is the bad guy.  But...how do you know before the fact?

Did you read they did not know at the time?

I think you just made up a load of rubbish, as no where does it state as you claim

This is not the US and thank goodness for that, as they would be trigger happy.

Quill, your trigger happy Police would have shot him !

nicko wrote:Quill, your trigger happy Police would have shot him !

Exactly

Original Quill wrote:I didn't see where the victim, Nedd, did anything criminal.

That will be because you haven't seen the CCTV footage of the offence.

I don't see anything wrong with the arrest...

No worse than a bystander "straight arming" him as he tried to flee his crime..

It would have been different if someone else (i.e. not a police officer) had taken and posted that video --  but it is quite questionable and 'unprofessional' to have an Inspector posting that and then openly bragging about it on social media.

WhoseYourWolfie wrote:

I don't see anything wrong with the arrest...

No worse than a bystander "straight arming" him as he tried to flee his crime..

It would have been different if someone else (i.e. not a police officer) had taken and posted that video --  but it is quite questionable and 'unprofessional' to have an Inspector posting that and then openly bragging about it on social media.

agree, only thing a bit weird is the cops posting it

nicko wrote:Quill, your trigger happy Police would have shot him !

Lol...proud of it.