A mum says she was left feeling "violated" after a police officer "manhandled" and "wrongly arrested" her for evading a bus fare, a court has heard.
Jocelyn Agyemang was allegedly assaulted in front of her young son by Pc Perry Lathwood, 50, and was left with bruising injuries to her arm. The arrest, which occured on July 21 last year in Croydon, south London, saw officers ask Agyemang to present her ticket as she left the bus.
City of London Magistrates' Court heard the policemen were helping ticket inspectors on the bus in Croydon at the time. Paul Jarvis, prosecuting, said Ms Agyemang was dropping her son off at her mother's house before heading to an appointment in Marylebone scheduled for 12.30pm.
The pair left the bus at around 11am when she was asked to show she had paid her fare by a bus inspector. Mr Jarvis told the court:
"She does not hand it over and she walks off. It is at this moment that Pc Lathwood becomes involved." Lathwood put a hand on Ms Agyemang, but she moved away. He then proceeded to grab her arm and arrest her for fare evasion.
A crowd gathered, with people filming the officer and asking him why he had arrested her. In footage played to the court, Ms Agyemang can be heard asking the officer: "Can you get off me, please? Can you get off my arm? You don't understand, I have done nothing wrong."
Mr Jarvis said Lathwood continued to hold her, demanding she tap her card. He also handcuffed her. Another officer took her Oyster card from her hand and went away with it to see if she had paid. It was confirmed that Ms Agyemang had paid her fare, and she was de-arrested at the scene.
Mr Jarvis said: "There was no necessity for an arrest. The officer in deciding to carry out this arrest, and deciding to lay hands on her and to manhandle her, was acting unlawfully because he had no justification. There was not a legitimate justification for using force to arrest her at that time. Even if it was necessary to arrest her, the level of force was not reasonable."
Ms Agyemang, speaking to the court, said she felt "very violated" by the incident. She added: "I just felt like they did not care. I just felt a bit degraded because I had not done anything wrong." Kevin Baumber, defending, asked her why she walked off, to which she replied: "At the time I was just thinking about getting to my mother's house." He also asked her why she "resisted" the police when she was stopped. She said: "I honestly don't see it as resisting."
She continued, saying she was confused and just wanted to get to her appointment on time. She described the experience as "very scary". Ms Agyemang said: "I just remember the strong grip. With things I have experienced in my past, when someone is holding me, especially when I feel like I have done nothing wrong, it is very scary for me."
Lathwood, who is attached to the Metropolitan Police's Road Traffic Policing Command, appeared in court wearing a blue suit and blue and white tie. He denies one charge of assault by beating, and the trial continues.