Investigation into claims man was Tasered eight times

5:15pm Wednesday 19th December 2007

AN INVESTIGATION is underway into police conduct after an innocent man claimed he was stunned by a Taser gun eight times.

The Metropolitan Police's Directorate of Professional Standards is looking into the claims made by 45-year-old Daniel Sylvester from Tottenham after the incident in October.

As part of an operation using Automatic Number Plate Recognition (ANPR), Mr Sylvester's car was stopped in Bounces Road, Edmonton by Haringey Police based on "fire-arms related intelligence" and when he got out of his vehicle he was Tasered once, according to police. Nothing was recovered from a search of the vehicle.

Mr Sylvester, however, claims he was stunned in the head with the Taser repeatedly causing excrutiating pain.

The use of Taser guns by police across London was increased to non-firearms officers on a trial period this month, but concerns remain over the use of the equipment which is meant to incapacitate suspects with a 50,000-volt shock.

A spokeswoman for the Met said: "Where there are signs of adverse or unusual reaction medical assistance will be provided immediately."

The Metropolitan Police Authority (MPA), the accountable body for the capital's police service, approved the extension of Taser use on December 10, but said concerns remained.

Cindy Butts, deputy chair of the MPA, said: "Our concerns have not gone away, nor have they been answered.

"Disproportionality of those the Taser is used against, the vulnerability of certain groups who may experience the threat of Taser use, and the extent of officer training remain of concern."

Guidelines from the Home Office and the Association of Chief Police Officers (ACPO) state that Taser should be used where "officers are facing violence or threats of violence of such severity that they would need to use force to protect the public, themselves and/or the subject(s) of their action."