Inquiry into 'police punch' film

A police force is to begin a misconduct inquiry after footage showing an officer apparently punching a football fan was posted on YouTube.

The amateur footage shows Hampshire Constabulary officers wrestling with a struggling man after Southampton's home game against Charlton on 4 April.

The footage appears to show one officer punching a fan in the back three times.

Hampshire Constabulary said it had been trying to keep rival fans apart and that three people had been arrested.

The three were held during and immediately after the match on suspicion of "public order and breach of the peace type offences", police said.

The force said it had not received any complaints about the incident before it was brought to the force's attention on Wednesday.

'Abuse and threats'

The footage was posted on the video-sharing website the day after the match on 5 April.

A force spokesperson said detectives from the force's internal professional standards department were now "investigating the matter from a police misconduct perspective".

"At the end of the game police were involved in trying to keep rival fans apart," the spokesperson said.

"Officers were subjected to abuse and threats and had coins and other objects thrown at them."

About 80 officers and staff were involved in policing the match, including civilian controllers.




THE BBC