Fist bump stop-and-search: Trust in police 'destroyed', man warns

Liam and Dijon Joseph were detained by police after they had exchanged a fist bump

A man wrongly suspected of dealing drugs after fist bumping his brother says cases like his "destroy trust" in police, among the black community.

Liam Joseph, 29, and his brother Dijon are suing the Met Police after they were forcibly searched by officers in Deptford in February 2018.

The brothers believe they were targeted because they are black.

The Met Police said there "were no findings of wrongdoing" in relation to the incident.

The brothers told the BBC that officers suspected the pair had exchanged drugs.

One officer restrained Liam, while a second rifled his pockets and - despite finding nothing suspicious - took his keys and searched his car.

"The police were hunting for something to justify an arrest, even though we had done nothing wrong," Liam said.

Lawyers for the pair say they are suing the Met for discrimination, assault and false imprisonment.

Liam says the police force needs to "take accountability" for racially profiling him and his brother.

Before beginning legal proceedings, the brothers say they approached the Equality & Human Rights Commission for help in bringing a case but were refused assistance.

They also asked Met Police Commissioner Cressida Dick to admit discrimination under the Equality Act, but this was not forthcoming.

Ultimately, Liam says he felt the only option was to begin civil proceedings against the Met.

"I would like the police to say they were wrong," he said.

"I'm trying to get some trust back between the police and the black community, but incidents like mine destroy trust.

"The only way to rebuild that trust is for police to take accountability."

Liam says he hopes his actions will encourage others to come forward with their own stories.

"Police think as only 1% of people are complaining, that the system works - but it doesn't."

'Unconscious bias training'

An Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) investigation into the incident concluded there was insufficient evidence to uphold any misconduct complaint against the officers,

But the case was highlighted by the IOPC in a review of stop-and-searches in London published on Tuesday.

The watchdog made 11 recommendations on how officers could improve practices, all of which were accepted by the Met.

A Met Police spokesperson said: "The IOPC investigation concluded that there were no findings of wrongdoing in relation to any officer involved in this incident."

New "standards of professional behaviour" around stop-and-search were launched nationally in February and "have been fully accepted into practice by the Met", the spokesperson said.

"The current stop-and-search training package for new recruits was developed in close partnership with subject matter experts and is regularly reviewed by a central team.

"All recruits are also trained in unconscious bias as part of their foundation course."