Body-worn video case 'concerning', says government

The government has said its thoughts are with a woman who claims she was assaulted and falsely imprisoned by two police forces.

Nadine Buzzard-Quashie is pursuing millions of pounds in damages after being arrested in London and Northampton five years ago.

A Home Office spokesperson described her case as "concerning" and said it "expected every officer to act with the highest levels of honesty and integrity at all times".

The Met Police and Northamptonshire Police declined to comment while the legal action was ongoing.

Footage from police body-worn cameras of Buzzard-Quashie's arrest in Northampton was published exclusively by the BBC after Northamptonshire Police repeatedly told a court the footage did not exist.

The chief constable was found guilty of contempt of court and fined £50,000, while it is understood the force has paid out a further £275,000 in legal costs to date.

A high-ranking officer at Northamptonshire Police and two staff members are being investigated for allegedly perverting the course of justice in relation to the court action.

Buzzard-Quashie, from London, was in poor mental health and had been reported missing by her family on 3 September 2021.

She was tracked down to the gateway of Althorp House stately home by police officers who checked on her welfare then followed her car for 15 minutes.

The footage showed officers in a third police car throw metal spikes in front of her Range Rover causing her to pull over.

She was told she was not under arrest, and was seen walking away along the A428.

Minutes later two officers forced her to the ground for failing to stop, whereupon she said her face was pushed into stinging nettles.

Buzzard-Quashie told the BBC she believed Northamptonshire officers had detained her to remove a graphic CCTV recording that she had recently received from the Met Police, which she had in the boot of her car.

It showed her using a custody toilet at Hammersmith Police Station in west London in March 2021. She had made a formal request for the footage to be released by Scotland Yard.

She claims she was wrongfully arrested by the Met for malicious communications after posting on Instagram some of the racist messages people had sent her. She was not charged with any offence.

The Home Office said: "Our thoughts are with Nadine Buzzard-Quashie following this concerning case.

"The government expects every officer to act with the highest levels of honesty and integrity at all times.

"This is now the subject of an ongoing investigation, and it would be inappropriate to comment further at this time."

Buzzard-Quashie's damages claims against Northamptonshire Police and the Met Police will be heard during two civil jury trials at the High Court in April 2027.

Northamptonshire's Police and Crime Commissioner's office is carrying out its own independent inquiry into how the force has handled the case.