Police dragged me out for being black says top GB athlete
A TOP athlete says she is going to sue police for “racial profiling” after they dragged her and her boyfriend from their car and held them for 45 minutes.
Bianca Williams, who won gold in the 4x100m relay at the Commonwealth Games in 2018, said her partner Ricardo dos Santos – a Portuguese athlete – was treated like “dirt on their shoe”.
She was separated from their three-monthold baby, who was in their black Mercedes, throughout the ordeal.
Video of the incident in Maida Vale, northwest London, has been shared on social media.
It shows a clearly distressed Bianca shouting,
“My son is in the car!” before she is handcuffed. She said Ricardo, 25, who holds the 400m record for Portugal, had been stopped around 15 times.
“It’s always the same thing – they think he’s driving a stolen vehicle or he’s been smoking cannabis. It’s racial profiling.
“The way they spoke to Ricardo, like he was scum, dirt on their shoe, was shocking.” Bianca,
‘It was shocking’...footage of the couple’s car being searched and, left, a police officer detaining them
26, also told BBC Radio 4’s Today: “They see a black male driving a nice car and they assume he is involved in some sort of gang, drug, violence problem.”
Saturday’s incident was also condemned by former Olympic champion Linford Christie, who coaches both athletes.
He tweeted: “This type of abuse of power and institutionalised racism cannot be justified or normalised any longer.” Scotland Yard said the car was on the wrong side of the road and sped off when asked to stop. But Bianca said: “That is false. We were driving down through single-width roads.”
She added: We are planning on taking it down the legal route.”
Met Police Commander Helen Harper said: “I understand the concern when incidents like this happen and how they can appear when part of it is filmed without context.
“We conducted a review that included social media footage and the officers’ body-worn camera footage. We are satisfied there are no misconduct issues.”