Investigation into ‘brute force’ in woman’s arrest

THE Independent Police Complaints Commission launched an investigation yesterday after a police officer used what he himself called “brute force” in arresting a young black mother-of-one.

PC Anthony Mulhall, of South Yorkshire Police, was removed from frontline duties after it emerged that he hit Toni Comer in order to subdue her, so she could be handcuffed.

In a statement made after the incident, PC Mulhall said he hit her “as hard as I was physically able”.

The incident, captured on CCTV, occurred outside the Niche nightclub in Sheffield last July and 5ft 6in Ms Comer, who weighs around nine stone, is pursuing a civil action against the force.

Speaking at her parents’ house, Ms Comer, 20, said, “I was very shocked and very upset that they would do this to somebody.”

Ms Comer said she had been drinking brandy and Cokes before she arrived at the club, where she had been many times before, at around 11.30pm.

She had no memory of the incident, which occurred at around 2am, in which she suffered bruising to her arm, the back of her neck, above her eye, and to the side of her head.

She is epileptic and believes her movements may have been caused by a fit.

Ms Comer, mother of two-year-old Tyrees, said she told police she was epileptic when she arrived at the station but nobody came to check on her.

Meredydd Hughes, the force’s chief constable, said he was “horrified” when he saw the footage, but added the full video showed there was “more to this case than meets the eye”.

The CCTV footage, obtained by The Guardian and shown on BBC2’s Newsnight, shows Ms Comer and the police officer falling down a flight of stairs outside the nightclub, with the officer landing on top.

Police were called when Ms Comer vandalised a car after being thrown out of the club. She pleaded guilty on Wednesday to criminal damage and was given a conditional discharge and ordered to pay £250 (€367) compensation.