Footage of a police officer dragging a homeless refugee and stamping on them has circulated online.
The video shows an officer of the Greater Manchester police seizing a homeless person’s sleeping bag and dragging it across the floor, with them still inside. The officer then goes on to intentionally tread on them.
The man, who wishes to remain anonymous, stated in a BBC News interview ‘I was telling her I need to sleep. But she stamped on my stomach with her foot. It caused me problems – I had a fever and in the following hours I had blood in my urine.’ He required hospital treatment.
The attack took place outside Manchester Town Hall, where the man slept. The Town Hall is where homelessness support systems are located.
This is one example of several, where homeless people have faced abuse in recent months. A man in Birmingham was set on fire in November. McDonald’s security guards doused a rough sleeper and his belongings with water in London in December. The Metropolitan Police also ‘unlawfully’ detained a homeless pensioner and destroyed his belongings, resulting in legal action.
These incidents followed legislative proposals by Suella Braverman, then Home Secretary, which criminalised the use of tents by homeless people and attacked charities which supported them. She described homelessness as a ‘lifestyle choice’.
Matt Downie, chief executive of Crisis, said ‘We are concerned that incidents like this could become more common and urge the Westminster government to work with police forces to ensure officers are getting the right training to support people in need.’
Polly Neate, the chief executive of Shelter, said: ‘This is a harrowing reminder of the abusive and brutal treatment people are often faced with when sleeping on the streets. Sleeping rough is deeply unsafe with people under the constant threat of harassment and violence. Nobody chooses to spend their night shivering in a sleeping bag. But record high rents and the government’s failure to build enough social homes mean more people are becoming homeless and growing numbers of them are ending up on the street.’
The Sudanese man has since secured housing and received an apology from the officer involved in the incident.
In a statement, Greater Manchester Police said: ‘The officer’s behaviour fell below the standards we expect, especially concerning respect for all members of the community, and the officer’s actions were dealt with.’
They commented further, ‘She, along with other employees, received refresher training on how to deal with similar situations in the future.’
