Watchdog to probe case after Walworth driver, arrested with knife, dies in hospital

A driver who swallowed a substance and died, after being arrested, had been held for having a knife in his car.

The man’s death has been referred to the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC).

At about 11:30am on Friday, 30 March, police stopped a car in Brandon Street, Walworth.

The 26-year-old driver was detained on suspicion of being in possession of a knife. A lock knife was found in the car and the man was arrested.

He was taken to Walworth police station, where at around 12:15pm, shortly after he arrived at the police station, custody staff called an ambulance as it was suspected he had swallowed a substance.

The man was taken by the London Ambulance Service to a central London hospital where he died on Saturday, 31 March.

A post-mortem examination will be held in due course.

The Met’s Directorate of Professional Standards is investigating and a referral was made to the Independent Office for Police Conduct who have begun an independent investigation.