My client John Black has a twin brother named Jonathan Black. My client’s brother also resides in London, but at a different address.
In 2009 John was arrested for a driving offence, hence creating a Police National Computer (PNC) profile. While in custody my client had his photograph and DNA taken but was ultimately not charged.
On a July evening in 2022 several officers from the Metropolitan Police attended at John’s home address. When John answered the door to the Police, they asked him if he was ‘John Black’ (not Jonathan) and when he confirmed that he was John, they stated that they were there to arrest him for an offence of GBH. John was understandably shocked, but when informed by the Police of some of the details about the offence he immediately told them that they should be looking for his brother, not him. John even produced his ID to verify his identity, but the Officers nevertheless proceeded with the arrest.
John was allowed to dress in a t-shirt and shorts. As he suffers from sciatica, he was also allowed to take with him his crutch and his prescribed painkillers.
John was then conveyed to his local Police Station. Due to my client’s sciatica and the application of handcuffs, he was in considerable pain while in transit in the Police van and unable to relieve that pain. On being presented at the custody desk the circumstances of my client’s arrest were given as:
Arrest enquiry at the home address, DP has been circulated as wanted for the offence of GBH where its alleged DP has hit someone over the head causing bleeding and bruising.
Further, the reasons for his detention were given as:
To obtain evidence by questioning, To prevent breach of peace
John’s detention was then authorised, his DNA, fingerprints and photo were taken, and he was placed into a cell.
Given his skimpy attire John found the cell cold and uncomfortable. Throughout the night, John repeatedly requested his pain killing medication, however none was provided.
At 09:10 the following morning John’s custody record was updated with the following key entry:
I have discussed this case with the investigating officer and I have been briefed on the background to this case and the current status of the gathered material. I have been made aware by the OIC that the suspect arrested John Black is a twin and his brother Jonathan Black is actually the suspect for this offence.
The wrong information has been recorded on the suspect page and hence the wrong details entered on the PNC circulation.
John can be released NFA and the correct suspect will now be circulated.
Shortly thereafter, John was released with No Further Action. My client attempted to complain to Officers regarding the failure to provide his medication, however his complaint was ignored.
John subsequently instructed me to pursue a claim against the Metropolitan Police for his wrongful arrest and those breaches of the Data Protection Act 2018 which had led to his arrest i.e. the Police confusing John’s personal details with those of the actual suspect, his brother Jonathan.
John felt angry and humiliated by what had happened to him. In addition to the physical pain that he had to endure, he had suffered over 18 hours of loss of his liberty as a prisoner of the Metropolitan Police in a cold and uncomfortable cell. Despite knowing that he was innocent, he felt ashamed and degraded by the whole process, which feelings were compounded by the uncaring attitude of the Police even once they realised their mistake. He suffered flashbacks, sleep disturbance and a loss of trust in the Police, which led to him being referred for counselling.
Although my client shared a date of birth with his brother and their names are indeed similar, there is simply no excuse for ‘mistaken identity’ errors like this in the Criminal Justice System. The Police and other law enforcement agencies must be held to the highest standards of attention to detail when it comes to researching the identities of suspects on the PNC and then circulating details for arrest, because the consequences of an error are so serious.
If the Police want the right to maintain databases containing the details of individuals who have single, minor, or decade-old interactions with the Criminal Justice System – then they simply have to handle that material to an impeccably high standard; nobody should be at risk of arrest because of an admin error which could have easily been avoided.
I have recently concluded John’s claim against the Metropolitan Police for significant damages and legal costs.
I am pleased that I have been able to secure this settlement for John, which represents fair recompense for the trauma and loss of liberty that he suffered; it is also another act of chipping away at Police negligence/recklessness and hopefully ensuring that fewer people suffer this form of wrongful arrest in the future.
The Metropolitan Police habitually fail to apologise or even admit formal liability in cases like this, so their money speaks far louder – and we might say more honestly – than their words do.
Names have been changed.
You must be logged in to post a comment.