West Midlands Police officer faces misconduct panel after Sikh man's patka removed

Protesters gathered outside the police station in October after a video started circulating on social media

A police sergeant is to face a gross misconduct hearing after a Sikh man said his head covering was forcibly removed in custody.

The Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) said it investigated the actions of seven officers over an incident at a custody suite in Perry Barr, Birmingham, in October.

It said one, a sergeant, may have breached standards.

The complainant described his experience as a "racial hate crime".

He said his treatment was due to discrimination against him as a Sikh.

Hundreds of people demonstrated outside the Perry Barr station in October after a video started circulating on social media suggesting the man's patka had been stamped on, although the video was quickly branded by the IOPC at the time as false.

On Wednesday, it said CCTV confirmed this was the case.

However, the watchdog said standards for equality and diversity may have been breached during the incident.

'Significant unrest'

It also referenced the sergeant's "use of force relating to his handling of the situation and his decision to remove the man's head covering".

IOPC regional director Derrick Campbell said the incident had "caused significant unrest within the local community at the time".

He said a misconduct panel would now be put together by West Midlands Police.

While the watchdog said the other six officers would not face a hearing, it said four of them "would benefit from taking part in reflective practice".