Two London police officers sacked for arresting Portuguese athlete Ricardo dos Santos

Two London police officers were sacked this Wednesday after being found guilty of harmful conduct in July 2020 when they searched and detained Portuguese athlete Ricardo dos Santos and British athlete Bianca Williams, who complained of racial discrimination.

London’s Metropolitan Police this Wednesday decided to sack the officers following a disciplinary committee’s finding that Jonathan Clapham and Sam Franks lied when they said they smelled cannabis when the pair were arrested on July 4, 2020. operation while on the road.

The two athletes complained of racial discrimination and claimed they were targeted by police because of the color of their skin, a claim now confirmed by the disciplinary committee after five agents denied they acted out of racism but rather “suspicious behavior.” “Portuguese athlete.

The remaining three agents were acquitted.

A 27-year-old Portuguese 400m sprinter and a 28-year-old British sprinter, who are married, were arrested on 4 July 2020 in west London while traveling in a car with their three-month-old baby. old child, they were handcuffed and searched by the police, who found nothing unusual.

The Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) launched a major investigation into the extent of racial discrimination in British policing in July 2020 in the wake of the Black Lives Matter movement.

As part of anti-racism demonstrations sparked around the world by the death of George Floyd, an American who was strangled to death by a police officer in the United States, several cases of possible police violence against minorities have sparked outrage in the United Kingdom.

Former Scotland Yard commissioner Cressida Dick announced her resignation in February 2022 following a damaging IOPC report exposing racist, misogynistic and discriminatory behavior in policing, and London Mayor Sadiq Khan welcomed the launch of an investigation.