A Metropolitan Police officer who drove into a cyclist and dragged him along a road has been cleared of dangerous driving. PC Eugene Acheampong was acquitted of causing injury by dangerous driving following a trial at Southwark Crown Court.
The incident occurred on 3 August 2019 in Wood Green, north London, when PC Acheampong was investigating reports of men tampering with cars. He saw Arnold Taylor, 46, leave the scene by bike and chased him in a marked police BMW, exceeding the 20mph speed limit. Mr Taylor fell under the car and suffered severe injuries, including a partially severed left ear, collapsed lungs, a broken front tooth, and fractures to his rib, jaw and vertebrae.
CCTV footage shown to the jury captured the 35-second chase on Hawke Park Road. Prosecutors noted PC Acheampong drove at 27mph in a 20mph zone. The officer claimed in a statement that Mr Taylor was riding in an 'arrogant' manner, moving erratically to evade him. He said he was 'distressed' by the incident and did not deliberately run over the cyclist.
The jury heard that no defects were found on the police car, but the blue lights were not working. They could not reach a verdict on the lesser charge of careless driving, and were discharged. The Crown Prosecution Service will decide whether to retry PC Acheampong for that offence.
