Recommendation, Stop and search, Deptford - Metropolitan Police, February 2018

On 27 February 2018, six Metropolitan Police Service (MPS) officers were patrolling Deptford High Street, Lewisham. One of the officers alleged that they sighted two men involved in a drug exchange. The officers approached the men and detained them under Section 23 of the Misuse of Drugs Act. During the search, one of the men was handcuffed and the officers also searched a vehicle belonging to one of the men. No drugs were found. One of the men was also arrested when a credit card was found in his possession, which was issued to a different name. The man was later de-arrested when it was confirmed that the credit card belonged to his girlfriend. The search caused community tensions with members of the public surrounding the incident. During this investigation, our investigators obtained extensive body worn video and mobile phone footage for the police stop and search. We also obtained …