Caught on video, suspect punched 26 times by PC
Shocking images show boxer held down and beaten in drugs arrest
THESE disturbing pictures capture the moment a policeman punched a suspected drug dealer 26 times.
They show Adam Salman, 27, struggling as he is pinned to the ground by three officers.
Recorded on a mobile phone, the footage shows one officer suddenly launching a flurry of punches into the professional boxer’s back. His colleagues do nothing to stop him.
The 42-second clip sparked a storm of controversy and claims of police brutality when it emerged online yesterday. But Scotland Yard said Salman did not complain about his treatment and was later jailed for six weeks for drugs offences and resisting arrest.
Salman’s trainer and close friend Alec Wilkey said he had turned his life around.
Mr Wilkey, who runs a successful boxing team based in east London, said Salman has not mentioned how he was arrested. ‘He got into a kerfuffle,’ he added. ‘These boys know what is going to come if they get caught – they are street boys and they won’t be screaming.’
The footage was recorded in May after Salman was confronted by officers who saw him acting suspiciously near his home in Morden, south London.
Uploaded to YouTube with the caption ‘Police officer loses his temper’, it shows three uniformed officers – two men and a woman – restraining him on the ground in a suburban street.
Salman can be seen bucking his body and kicking his legs as they wrestle with him before one officer repeatedly punches him in the back. An unknown man, who appears to be holding the camera, says: ‘F ***** g hell, big geezer’s bashing him right up.’
He adds: ‘Calm down. F ***** g hell, is that police brutality?’
The Metropolitan Police said Salman was convicted of possessing cocaine and three counts of obstructing a police officer. The boxer and sports trainer was sentenced to six weeks in prison at South West London Magistrates’ Court.
The court heard he was arrested after being spotted ‘acting suspiciously’ and running away from
‘Geezer’s bashing him right up’
officers. He was then seen ‘attempting to conceal an item’.
A spokesman said: ‘Following a short foot chase, he was stopped and officers attempted to detain him. As he violently resisted arrest, officers witnessed him attempt to swallow bags of white powder, which following examination, was found to be cocaine.’
Salman, who lives with his parents in Morden, is enjoying a successful welterweight career. Official statistics show he has seven wins out of eight fights, including four that ended with a knockout. Known as ‘Raw’, he suffered a serious hand injury at the end of last year which prevented him competing.
Mr Wilkey said the arrest was the second time Salman had been in trouble for drugs offences and jailed but he hoped it was the last.
The veteran trainer attended court the first time he was jailed and spoke directly to the judge as a character reference.
He said Salman had got in with the wrong crowd, which included members of a Somali street gang linked to violence and drugs.
Mr Wilkey said the boxer was back in the ring and beat a Lithuanian rival last month. ‘These kids are street boys,’ he said. ‘You would not believe the stories. They say that if you do not carry a knife, the person coming towards you will be. That’s the kind of stuff these youngsters come out with all the time.
‘Since that second time he went to prison he has been as good as gold. He is back at the gym every day. He is a good lad, he is the most polite boy you could wish to meet.’
Last night, the Met Police said the footage had been referred to anticorruption investigators.
A spokesman said the officers had been identified, but none has been suspended from duty. ‘No complaint has been received from the person who was arrested,’ he added.