The sisters of the man arrested on suspicion of being the so-called “Putney Pusher” have appealed to the Home Secretary as they fight to clear his name. Nicholas Brandram, 44, was under suspicion of being the jogger who pushed a woman into the path of a bus during a run on Putney Bridge in west London in May 2017.
Mr Brandram, a senior banker and former army captain, was arrested in June in connection with the incident but was bailed pending investigation. He was found dead at his home in Chiswick on Tuesday, September 15.
Sisters Defend Brother on Good Morning Britain
On Thursday morning, Mr Brandram’s two sisters, Alexia Hicks and Sophie Voelcker, appeared on Good Morning Britain to defend their brother. They called the Metropolitan Police’s investigation into question, and claimed that the force was “trying to pin it” on Mr Brandram.
Speaking to Tom Swarbrick and Susanna Reid, they said that a DNA sample their brother gave to police two months ago would clear his name - but that they have not received the results. They have been in contact with Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood in an attempt to get the Met to complete the test, and to explain how their brother’s identity was leaked to the press.
Claims of Police Failures
“Having this out there was just too much for him to take,” they said. “He had a wonderful spirit - but the police broke it.”
The sisters also gave a series of reasons why they say their brother could not have been the pusher. They said that Mr Brandram had no connection to Putney, his prominent tattoos and withered leg were not seen on CCTV footage of the incident, and the victim reported the attacker had brown eyes, not their brother’s blue ones. They added that email evidence - which at the time of the incident could only have been sent from his office in the West End - proved that he was not the “pusher”.
They claim the Met have failed in their duty of care to their brother and their family - and that society will suffer too, with the “psychopath” who committed the push still free. The force has referred itself to the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) over its contact with Mr Brandram.
Metropolitan Police Response
According to the Met, Mr Brandram was first linked to the incident in April when a person contacted officers with information that opened new lines of inquiry. The force said his arrest was deemed proportionate by officers in order to seize and search his devices as part of the investigation. The Met added that it had not named Mr Brandram publicly when he was arrested, or at any point before his death.
