BLOODIED BY TEEN THUG IN THE LINE OF DUTY
FEMALE OFFICER LEFT WITH INJURIES FOR LIFE BY 16-YEAR-OLD’S PUNCH
THIS is the battered and bloodied face of a police officer who was punched in the face by a young thug she was trying to handcuff.
The officer, who is in her 20s, suffered a broken and gashed nose, with injuries that will be with her for life.
After her attacker was found guilty this week, she has spoken of how the attack has affected her.
A POLICE officer suffered “horrific” injuries as she attempted to handcuff a 16-year-old.
The incident took place on September 12 in the area of Burton Road, Ashby, as she attempted to search a youth whose behaviour had been of concern.
The officer, who asked for her name not to be published, intially told the youth, who was both taller and stronger than her, she was going to search him.
But she then made the decision to handcuff him due to his behaviour and concerns he would leave the scene.
As she placed a handcuff around one of the youth’s wrists, he then used his free hand to punch her on the nose. The officer, who is in her 20s, said she suffered pain she “had never experienced before”.
She said: “It happened so quickly and I didn’t know what had hit me. I just felt extreme pain and realised I couldn’t see properly either.”
The officer, who managed to keep hold of the handcuffs after being attacked, was bleeding heavily from her nose and her mouth. She was assisted by colleagues, some of whom arrested the youth.
The officer was taken to Queens Hospital Burton, where it was found she had suffered a broken nose, a broken septum, a deep laceration and tear to the left side of her nose and nostril, significant swelling and bruising.
She had surgery in a bid to repair the damage and had six internal stitches and 11 external stitches on her nose.
On Tuesday, at youth court at Leicester Magistrates’ Court, a 16-year-old boy, of Swadlincote, pleaded guilty to the wounding of a police constable. He has been released on bail and is due to be sentenced on January 11, 2021. The youth cannot be named for legal reasons.
The injured officer said: “It does make me angry that I was out doing my job and I have been attacked in this way. It shouldn’t be accepted that I am attacked in my job and left with injuries like this that will be with me for the rest of my life.”
Three months on from the attack, the officer is awaiting further surgery as she is unable to breathe through her right nostril and has limited breathing through her left. She also has exposed cartilage in her nostrils as a result of the injuries.
She has been working from home and has not been able to go back to her normal duties, but said: “I hope to be able to be back out at some point working operationally, but at the moment it is a case of seeing how things are and how I feel.”
Inspector Rich Jackson, of North West Leicestershire police, said: “This was a horrific assault carried out on an officer who was simply doing her job. The attack was carried out by a person who was bigger, taller and stronger, meaning that one punch caused horrendous long-term injuries.
“Full support has been and remains in place for the officer concerned, who has bravely shared her story to raise awareness of an issue which needs to be stopped. It is not acceptable for anyone to be attacked in their job and we will not tolerate this happening to our officers. Action will be taken and we will ensure anyone who commits this offence is brought before the courts.”