The policing watchdog is set to look into concerns over the arrest of a black woman after she was held on the ground by multiple officers outside a shop in Hertfordshire following an altercation at a jewellery shop.
Police were sent to the scene on Saturday following reports of a woman being verbally abusive and physically aggressive at the jewellers on Shenley Road, with local media reporting she had allegedly been antisemitic towards a member of staff and had damaged a plastic protective screen.
However the response of the police, which saw two officers pin the woman to the ground as she was handcuffed, was seen by some bystanders as an example of an alleged culture of heavy-handed responses by authorities towards black people.
The incident comes in the wake of the death of George Floyd at the hands of the police, sparking an international movement challenging racism in society and the treatment of black people by the criminal justice system.
In footage of the Hertfordshire arrest the 32-year-old, who was visibly distressed while handcuffed on the pavement, could be heard saying “all I wanted was together my refund, that’s all I wanted”.
At other points she could be heard telling officers “don’t step on me”, “you’re going to kill me” and “I want my mother”.
Policing watchdog the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) has since said it will be looking into the matter.
