Man cleared of being bridge pushing jogger
A MILLIONAIRE banker accused of pushing a woman in front of a bus has been cleared by police.
American investment banker Eric Bellquist was arrested on suspicion of causing grievous bodily harm after a 33-year-old woman was knocked into the path of a moving bus on Putney Bridge, London, on May 5.
The victim fell in front of the bus, but narrowly avoided being mowed down as the driver swerved to avoid her.
It had been thought Bellquist was the jogger caught on CCTV pushing the woman on to the road but yesterday Metropolitan Police confirmed no further action will be taken against him.
Mr Bellquist was arrested on Thursday and was initially released under investigation but police have now eliminated him from enquiries.
A Met Police statement said: “A man arrested on suspicion of causing grievous bodily harm after a jogger pushed a woman into the path of an oncoming bus in Putney, has been released with no further action.
“The 41-year-old man was arrested on Thursday, before being released under investigation. Following enquiries, he has now been eliminated from the investigation.
“Officers are appealing for any witnesses to the incident or anyone who recognises the jogger in the CCTV to get in touch.”
Mr Bellquist, who works for London-based investment firm Hutton Collins, had denied any involvement in the incident and his lawyers said they had “irrefutable proof” he was in America on the day of the attack.
Duncan Lewis, the law firm acting on behalf of Mr Bellquist, released a statement on Friday which said: “Eric Bellquist, who was arrested in relation to an assault that took place on Putney Bridge, has been wrongly implicated.
“He categorically denies being the individual concerned and has irrefutable proof he was in the US at the time of the incident.
“Consequently, we expect a swift resolution to this wholly untrue allegation.”
Now the investigation continues as police hunt the jogger, described as a white man, aged early to mid-30s, with brown eyes and short brown hair, who was wearing a light grey T-shirt and dark blue shorts.
The victim, who sustained minor injuries, said her attacker came back across the bridge the other way 15 minutes later, but when she tried to talk to him he carried on jogging without acknowledging her.
She had been on the east side of the bridge when she was knocked into the path of the bus. The bus stopped and several passengers got off to go to the victim’s aid.