Two London police officers have been fired over the arrest of Portuguese 400m athlete Ricardo dos Santos, who accused the officers of racial discrimination.

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 today decided to sack the officers following a disciplinary committee finding that Jonathan Clapham and Sam Franks lied when they said they smelled cannabis when the pair were detained during an operation on July 4, 2020. bus station.

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.

“This case has had a huge impact on our family and our careers, but it is important that people who have a voice use it for all the people who are suffering but not being heard. That’s why I created @4thevoicelessuk to help people in difficult situations. The boat is similar to mine,” you can read on the Instagram account of the Portuguese athlete.

Ricardo dos Santos added that he has supported “the IOPC case against these agents for the last three years,” given that the majority of black people, regardless of their background, education or employment, “are nine times more likely to be stopped by the capital authorities.” Police and three times more likely to end up in handcuffs.”

“The police allegations that I was guilty of poor driving, threats of violence and drug use were false. I believe that these false accusations were based on racist stereotypes and show that little has changed in the work of the police in London since the Stephen Lawrence case.”

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.