Police inspector Dean Gittoes denies assaulting teen

Dean Gittoes denies the charge of assault by beating

A police inspector assaulted a 16-year-old because he was "sick of internet freaks" filming and putting things online, a court has heard.

Dean Gittoes, 49, has denied a charge of assault by beating.

The district judge at Cwmbran Magistrates' Court was shown footage filmed by the teen outside Merthyr Tydfil police station in August 2021.

It has been alleged that the South Wales Police officer was aggressive and, at one point, choked him.

In a police interview played to the court, the teen said he was part of a worldwide "auditing" group filming officers and how they interacted with the public.

He said he had gone to the station after a friend from the auditing community told him he had filmed Insp Gittoes about a month before.

In the footage from the teenager's phone, Insp Gittoes is seen and heard saying "I am asking you who you are, what's your name" before saying he may be a terrorist.

The teenager replies: "You suspect me of being a terrorist?"

Insp Gittoes then asks "what are you doing?" before the teenager replies: "I am filming."

The video then goes black but the audio recording continues for some time.

'A bad weekend'

The court was also played CCTV showing Insp Gittoes holding the 16-year-old's arm and walking with him into the police station and later arresting him.

The case is being heard at Cwmbran Magistrates' Court

The court heard the inspector stood by his handling of the situation, saying he assessed the situation according to guidance and used the "straight arm bar technique" to restrain the teenager.

The 16-year-old told police that Insp Gittoes was "aggressive", "pushed him" and, at one point, was "choking him".

In CCTV footage during the arrest, Insp Gittoes appears to pull the teenager's collar and the teenager told police that "it felt like he was tugging on my hood, that's why I said I can't breathe, I can't breathe".

Jason Howells, for the prosecution, said Insp Gittoes had wrongly used the Terrorism Act to arrest the teenager.

He said the officer had acted as he did because "he had had a bad weekend and he was annoyed about what had happened weeks before - saying he was fed up of those internet freaks filming and putting things on the internet".

The trial continues.