The 8 Month Pregnant Woman Who Was Stopped And Searched Alone At The Back Of A Shop
26 January 2019, 18:49
Ayesha Hazarika was told the disturbing story from a woman who was stopped and searched at the back of a shop by a plain-clothed police officer when she was 8-months-pregnant after a purse was stolen.
Jackie was 8-months-pregnant when she was approached in a shop for a stop and search.
She told Ayesha Hazarika: "I was a 27-year-old pregnant lady and black. I was in a shop and a plain clothed man came up to me. It was the days when we didn't have cameras in the shop.
"I was taken to the back of the shop, alone, with the man who was in plain clothes. I was 8 months pregnant and he said a lady had her purse stolen and he wanted to search me."
But Ayesha was shocked when Jackie said that she had to 'lift up her jumper'.
"I really didn't know until I phoned the police later and gave them his name and number that they said he was one of their officers," she said.
Jackie revealed her experience with being stopped and search as London's police force comes under criticism for "disproportionate" use of the tactic against black people.
The Metropolitan Police defended figures that reveal black people are more than four times as likely to be stopped and searched as white people by saying that youths from an "African-Caribbean heritage" were more likely than whites to be knife attackers or victims and that the tactic is a crucial method in catching criminals.
A statement reported by the Guardian said: "The Met has seen an increase in the use of the tactic over the last year particularly within the last six months, largely due to the increase in street violence and related drug crime.
"Crime is not proportionate and the root causes are complex. Knife crime and street violence disproportionately affects boys and young men, particularly of African-Caribbean heritage both in terms of victims and perpetrators.
"In 2018, 76% of homicide victims are male, with 62% of the total being of African-Caribbean heritage and aged under 25. In relation to victims of knife injuries under the age of 25, 455 were white and 1,370 were BAME.
"We must focus our efforts in the areas requiring our support and intervention to stop more young people being injured, dying or damaging their lives by committing serious offences."
Listen to Jackie's discomforting story in the video above.
