Court sees footage of star’s car park arrest in Redditch - The Redditch Standard

Court sees footage of star’s car park arrest in Redditch

Redditch Editorial 24th Aug, 2017 Updated: 25th Aug, 2017   0

A TV STAR was punched, hit with a baton and pepper-sprayed by a police officer as he sat in his van with his two children at a McDonald’s restaurant in Redditch.

Huntley Thawe, aged 48 and the handyman on Channel Four’s The Renovation Game, was meeting his ex-wife to pick up his childrens’ passports when the confrontation took place.

However it was Thawe, of Elmley Close in Kidderminster, who found himself in the dock, accused of two counts of assault on a police officer, resisting an officer and using threatening or abusive words or behaviour.

At Redditch Magistrates Court on Wednesday (August 23) he pleaded not guilty to the charges.




The court heard how on April 15 this year, police were called at 12.32 to McDonald’s on Clews Road in Oakenshaw.

Sarah Hurd, prosecuting, said Thawe was in his van with his children, aged six and eight. He was asked to move his car by two police officers but the defendant was ‘not co-operative’. They then attempted to arrest him.


Audio and video footage played during the trial seemed to show the defendant being dragged from the car by three officers and then being hit repeatedly with a baton.

PC Andrew Herlihy said he had tried to reason with the defendant, asking him several times to move his van.

“He was sitting in the car with both hands on the steering wheel. He started to talk over me and due to his demeanor I classed him as violent,” he said.

“I had my hand on his hand and he kept pushing it away. I got into the vehicle to try to pull him out.

“I sprayed non-compliant spray (pepper spray) but it had no effect.

“He took hold of me by my body armour and shirt collar so I struck him to the face with my right hand.”

Thawe was pepper-sprayed twice more and when another officer arrived they struggled to get him to the ground.

“I drew my baton and struck the defendant on the arm as many times as it took him to release his grip on my body armour,” said PC Herlihy. “I was seriously concerned for my safety.”

Thawe claimed the accusations of assault were ‘lies’ and at one stage stormed out of the courtroom.

Defending, Sarah Magill, said Thawe had been sitting in his van and hadn’t offered any violence.

“Hitting someone with a baton, using pepper spray and punching someone in the head is excessive force,” she added.

Thawe was released on conditional bail and the trial will continue on September 15.

Announcements

Weddings, Birthdays, Bereavements, Thank you notices, Marriages and more.

Buy Photos

Buy photos online from the Redditch Standard newspaper.

Reader Travel

Check out all of the latest reader travel offers to get your hands on some free gifts.

Printing

We can provide all of your printing needs at competitive rates.