Figures have highlighted that stop and search in London rose by 40% during lockdown and a lower proportion of them led to arrests. The tactic was used 104,914 times between April and June, equating to more than 1,100 times a day.
Scotland Yard said the drop in the crime rates during the pandemic meant more officers had been able to go on the frontline and target drug dealers and violent gangs. But they also note that only one in five stops led to an arrest, fine or caution. The statistics have prompted renewed concerns that police are using the power indiscriminately.
Speaking to The Guardian Maurice Mcleod, the chief executive of Race On the Agenda (Rota), said, “These latest statistics are worrying. They show that as reported crime fell during lockdown, police officers have had more time to work proactively and that this proactive work seems to have resulted in a huge spike in stops.
“The increased proportion of stops that result in no action suggests that stops are being carried out based on officers’ pre-existing biases rather than on genuine suspicion of criminality. As lockdown regulations ease, there is a real risk that the increasingly disproportionate use of these powers will further damage relations between the police and some of London’s communities.
The figures show that 21% of stops led to arrests, fines, drugs warnings or cautions, down from 33% two years ago. Only 9% of people stopped in May were arrested.
The report says drug-related stops accounted for 69% of the total, and those for weapons, points and blades made up 15%.
The number of offences reported to the Met between April and June dropped by 27% on the previous quarter, including falls of 40% in knife crime and 25% in gun crime, leaving officers more time to stop the few people who were out during lockdown.
