Cop assaulted autistic boy at kids’ footy match
Teen’s mum went to his home but was sworn at
A POLICE officer attacked an autistic schoolboy in a row sparked by a bad tackle at a children’s football match.
PC Darren Moore, 42, faces the boot from Police Scotland after being found guilty of assaulting and injuring the 13-year-old boy.
The boy told Dundee Sheriff Court a group of young children had been playing football in a park and a tackle led to a stand-up fight.
He said he was walking one of the boys to a shop when Moore hit him.
“I had never met him before,” the boy, now 16, said. “He walked aggressively towards me. I tried to tell him what happened. He was bigger than me. He was broader. He put his head on me. I’m sure he grabbed me [on the collar] and punched me on the left cheek.
“It happened that fast I did not have time to think. I fell instantly from the force of the impact from the punch. I have a picture of the handprint on my face.”
The boy’s friend, now 15, said he saw the attack and noticed the victim had a large bruise on his face.
The boy’s mother said: “He was really upset, saying he had been assaulted. He had marks on his face. He was in distress.”
She w ent to Moore’s home and said: “He was quite aggressive and swearing, telling me my son was a little s***. He said he slapped him.”
Moore claimed it was selfdefence, saying: “At the time he was a male aggressor. We now know he was a child. I put in a strike, from my training, and caught him in the upper chest and face. He lost his footing and has fallen on the ground.”
Moore, from Dundee, messaged Sgt Rory Duncan, 44: “Looking for advice. The lad, who is at least heights with me, put his head on my nose and pushed forward and my reaction was to push/slap him on the face to get away. Feel s*** mate. Could my job be at risk? I have to think about that.”
Sheriff Alison Michie fined Moore £750.