Bodycam footage has captured the moment a West Mercia Police officer launched himself over a parked patrol car to tackle a shirtless suspect who tried to flee arrest outside a Sainsbury’s in Malvern, Worcestershire.
Bodycam footage has emerged showing the dramatic moment a police officer flew through the air to rugby tackle a fleeing suspect after he attempted to escape by vaulting over a parked patrol car. West Mercia Police were called to a Sainsbury’s supermarket in Malvern, Worcestershire, earlier this week following reports of a man behaving aggressively in public. The footage shows the man being told he was wanted on suspicion of a section four public order offence, before he took off running across the car park and leapt over the bonnet of a parked police vehicle.
What the footage shows
In the clip, an officer can be heard telling the suspect: “I need you to be compliant with me,” as he informs him he is wanted in connection with the public order offence. The man responds “no no no no” before sprinting away across the car park and jumping over the bonnet of a stationary squad car. A pursuing officer then leaps over the same vehicle in an attempt to catch him, bringing the suspect to the ground with a rugby tackle.
As he is restrained, the man can be heard shouting: “Wait, wait. You fing tell me what you’re fing doing.” The officer responds simply: “We’re arresting you.” While being escorted to a police van, with a visibly bloodied elbow, the man continues pleading with officers: “Please let me off for five seconds. I’m not going to run, please just five seconds.” Officers were unmoved by his pleas, telling him to “get in” as he was placed under arrest on suspicion of a public order offence.
Police response
A spokesperson for West Mercia Police said: “Earlier this week, officers in Malvern were called to a report of a man behaving aggressively in a public place. They responded quickly, located the individual and took action to safely bring the situation under control. A man was subsequently arrested on suspicion of a public order offence. Our officers work every day to defuse potentially volatile situations, protect the public and keep our communities safe.”
