Police apologise to grandfather, 81, left bloodied after officers went to wrong address

A police force has apologised to an 81-year-old grandfather who was left bloodied and bruised after officers went to his home by mistake.

The elderly man – named in reports as Malcolm Emery – was arrested after two uniformed officers came to his home in response to reports of a disturbance in Potton, Bedfordshire, at about 5am on Friday.

He was taken into custody and left with bruises and bloody wounds to his wrists and arms.

Bedfordshire Police, which has referred itself to the police watchdog over the incident, said it had now apologised to the man and he will face no further action.

According to the force, he was arrested on suspicion of assaulting an emergency worker after an officer had suffered a head injury.

It said the man had initially approached the officers holding a “wooden implement” after they had “mistakenly looked through his window while responding to an unrelated incident”.

Deputy Chief Constable Trevor Rodenhurst said: “I wanted to say how deeply sorry we are to everyone involved in this incident, which appears to have begun with a simple case of a mistaken address but quickly escalated to a point where a man in his 80s has received injuries to his arms, as a result of being handcuffed, and an officer has suffered a head injury.

“I have updated the man’s family today to let them know he will face no further action in relation to the alleged assault as, after reviewing the evidence, we are content that the officer’s injuries were not caused by an intentional act.

“I have also apologised for what happened and the injuries he suffered.”

Mr Rodenhurst said it was “right that we acknowledge where we have got things wrong and there were opportunities to de-escalate this situation which were not taken”.

He added: “We’re continuing to offer support to the officer who was injured, as well as reviewing the footage of the incident to take on any immediate learning around dealing with vulnerable people.”

The man’s granddaughter, Kayla, tweeted about his arrest, sharing photos showing him with bruised and cut arms and a blood-stained vest.

Alongside the graphic images, she wrote: “My 81yr old grandad having been arrested because @BedsPolice got the wrong address at 3am.

“He was terrified, ill and it took 10 officers/6 vehicles to arrest him. Maybe his heart attack gave him superpowers? He’s in the cells, confused and bruised trying to defend himself.”

In a series of tweets after the incident, Bedfordshire Police clarified what was meant by the term “wooden implement”, saying: “This was not a walking stick: we are describing it as something similar in size and shape to a rounders bat.

“It isn’t a rounders bat, but is a wooden stick of that sort of size and shape.”