A Metropolitan Police officer has appeared in court accused of beating a mental health patient with ‘fists and batons’ outside a North London hospital. PC Anthony Bhar, 31, is one of five officers charged with two counts of grievous bodily harm (Section 18 and 20) in relation to an incident on April 3, 2023 where a man, now aged 57, was restrained and fell unconscious.
Bhar left Westminster Magistrates’ Court covering his face with a baseball cap and black face mask after a short hearing on Tuesday morning (August 5). Bhar appeared relaxed in the dock of Courtroom 3 as he was granted unconditional bail to appear at Snaresbrook Crown Court in East London on September 2.
Prosecutor Agathe Leport said the alleged victim was suffering a psychotic episode outside a hospital, so officers took him to a mental health ward, where he was assessed and discharged. While he was being removed from the hospital, officers allegedly used ‘excessive force to place him in handcuffs’ (Section 20 without intent) and ‘fists and batons to restrain him’ (Section 18 with intent).
PCs Elena Cebotari, 35, David Hollands, 25, Dan Penfold, 33, and Robert Wall, 26, will also appear at Westminster Magistrates’ Court on Friday, August 15, charged with the same GBH offences as PC Bhar. All the officers are attached to the force’s Central North Command.
The Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) previously said the officers responded to reports from members of the public of a man behaving erratically and setting fire to his clothes on Euston Road in Camden on April 3, 2023. After the man was taken to hospital ‘he became agitated at times’ and PAVA spray was used to restrain him, according to the police watchdog.
After the man fell unconscious he was given first aid and placed in a medically induced coma and released from hospital six weeks later. The IOPC got involved after a referral from the Met’s Directorate of Professional Standards on the same day. The watchdog gathered police body-worn footage and CCTV, as well as witness statements.
This week an IOPC spokesperson said: “In June 2024, we sent a file of evidence to the Crown Prosecution Service, which authorised the charges. Following the referral, we received requests from the CPS for further material to assist with its decision-making.”
The five officers are also being investigated for gross misconduct, while a further three officers are being investigated for potential misconduct, the IOPC has said.
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