It’s admittedly pretty weird to see people wearing multiple layers of clothing in hot weather, but is that a good enough reason for police to stop and search them? Eric Taylor, who also goes by Carter Jr, was on his way to work after a shopping trip to buy toilet roll last Wednesday when he was detained by police in Croydon in what they called “an area well known for drug dealing”:
@officialcarterjruk Everyone share this vid & @Metropolitanpoliceservice . Today I was being harrased by these 3 illiterate officers, giggling like kids when they were asking me idiotic questions like what am I wearing & why i look like i do. This bullying tactic they use is to get guys like me reacting a way they want so they can arrest me. This needs to stop NOW! #fyp #london #virall ♬ original sound – Officialcarterjruk
The police told Eric “you’re not dressed for the climate” and that his outfit “just seemed odd.” Eric works as a caretaker and owns a small business selling drinks and sandwiches. He’s pretty sure he was detained by the officers because he’s black. He told MyLondon:
There were kids wearing coats walking past me…but it’s because I’m black, that’s why (the police) do that. There were a lot of kids walking by with jackets on and they were white, they were not black.
For them to say that and use that kind of term that we’re searching you under Section 23 (Misuse of Drugs Act 1971), I’ve read Section 23. I can choose for you not to search me, unless you’ve got something to show I’m a suspect.
But there was nothing to suggest that I was a suspect, I’m just going about my day to day business. I’m holding a toilet roll in my hands. I’m not smoking or doing anything that will make the police think I’m a threat to the public. I was not doing any of that.
A statement from the Metropolitan Police said Eric was “wearing several layers of clothing despite the warm weather” and that he “became hostile and refused to account for what he was doing” after being approached by officers from the Violent Crime Taskforce. He was detained and searched under the Misuse of Drugs Act and he “went on his way” when nothing was found.
Detective Chief Superintendent Lee Hill, of the Violent Crime Taskforce, said:
We are aware of footage circulating on social media; this shows only a small part of this incident and we would ask people not to rush to judgement.
Sounds like the Met feels they were totally justified, and that the footage doesn’t show the full story. Which may be the case, but watching that clip alone, it definitely looks like an outrageous case of racial profiling. Or maybe they were the literal fashion police? Fair play to Eric for sharing his experience and let’s hope this sort of thing is kept to a minimum as we head into spring and summer.
To watch a dude knock out his girlfriend’s little brother after he called him the N-word to his face, click HERE.
