A police sergeant with an untarnished 20-year record has been given the sack after he wrestled a violent suspect to the ground and struck the man three times in a desperate bid to restrain him.
Rhodri Davies was found not to have caused any physical or mental harm to ‘highly aggressive’ Tariq Evans, 23, while trying to detain him on suspicion of affray during the fraught incident in 2022.
But a misconduct appeal last month determined Davies should be dismissed from South Wales Police for his ‘unnecessary, disproportionate, and unreasonable’ actions.
Four other findings of misconduct were overturned, but Davies heard that striking the suspect amounted to using ‘unlawful’ force.
Now local Labour MP Tonia Antoniazzi, who represents Gower, said the former custody sergeant had been ‘failed’, while Mr Davies has spoken out to say he ‘did not deserve’ to lose his job.
Speaking to The Telegraph, Mr Davies explained how his case has ‘terrified’ his former colleagues in situations where they have to handle violent suspects.
He said: ‘If we get something wrong, if we fail to search someone properly, if we fail to treat a suspect with the caution they require, it is potentially life or death.
‘[My former colleagues] do not use force on violent suspects because they are terrified that they will lose their jobs, and ultimately that means the public and police are less safe.’
Rhodri Davies has been given the sack after he wrestled a violent suspect to the ground and struck the man three times in a desperate bid to restrain him
A misconduct appeal last month determined Davies should be dismissed from South Wales Police for his ‘unnecessary, disproportionate, and unreasonable’ actions
The panel heard how in the run-up to the incident, Tariq Evans had already displayed violent behaviour towards other members of the public, as well as police officers
Mr Davies had been found guilty of gross misconduct at his initial hearing over the incident and dismissed from the force.
The panel heard how in the run-up to the incident, Evans had already displayed violent behaviour towards other members of the public, as well as police officers.
Evans, who it was heard has autism and ADHD, was arrested in the Morriston area of Swansea on October 24, 2022, shortly after 7.30pm.
Officers had been called to the scene amid reports of Evans and other males fighting, as well as the suspect hitting several vehicles with a fire extinguisher, the panel was told.
When Evans saw a marked police van arrive, he proceeded to approach it and headbutt its window. He then fled, causing officers to search for him in the area. Evans was eventually detained by Taser and use of PAVA.
It took ‘numerous officers to take him to the floor and restrain him’ while Evans is said to have also ‘spat’ at them.
One officer described his level of aggression on the night as ‘9 out of 10’.
Evans was said to have continued to be ‘aggressive and uncooperative’ and officers struggled to get handcuffs on him, eventually using a baton to assist.
Footage from the scene combined with testimony at the misconduct hearing reveal how Davies and other officers had attempted to bring Evans into the custody suite
Davies was accused of bringing Evans ‘to the ground in a dangerous manner and whilst he was on the ground you struck him on several occasions’
PC Jack Williams, 27, (pictured) was recorded on another officer’s body camera beating Evans and was jailed for 12 weeks
The suspect, still not complying, was placed into a spit hood and limb restraints in the back of a police van and transported to Swansea Custody Suite.
On the way, he is alleged to have tried to bite PC Jack Williams, who responded by punching him repeatedly in the head. Williams was later charged with assault by beating and jailed for 12 weeks.
By the time Evans arrived at the custody suite, he was still aggressive and attempted to kick at a female officer.
It was against this context that Davies then received Evans into custody – with what happened next determining the end of his police career.
Footage from the scene combined with testimony at the misconduct hearing reveal how Davies and other officers had attempted to bring Evans into the custody suite.
Davies was accused of bringing Evans ‘to the ground in a dangerous manner and whilst he was on the ground you struck him on several occasions.’
He was then accused of using an ‘unsafe technique’ to bring the suspect to his feet, ‘namely by using his handcuffs.’
With Evans now standing, Davies can be seen striking Evans ‘on one or more occasions’ before using ‘a dangerous restraint’. Davies was accused of placing his hand in a ‘c-clamp’ across the back of the suspect’s neck applying downward pressure, before using knee strikes against him.
The footage also shows the sergeant ‘losing patience’ and swearing at the suspect.
According to Jonathan Walters, for South Wales Police, the incident amounted to gross misconduct, because there was ‘no justification’ for taking Evans down to the floor at that point.
But Martin Graves, an expert on police use of force, told the original hearing that the actions of Davies were in line with his training and justified.
Ms Antoniazzi has also questioned the decision to sack the police sergeant.
She said: ‘How is it possible that a police sergeant, when acting in accordance with all the regulations, can have eight breaches reduced to only one and still lose his job?’
At the appeal, Davies highlighted that no other officers present made any complaint about his conduct at the time of the incident.
He also flagged that ‘unusually’ the investigating officer told those present they would not ‘get into trouble’ if they decided to change their accounts, having given statements at the time.
None of the witnesses amended their statements, the panel heard.
The case against Evans was subsequently dropped, while Davies has lost his appeal and now works in finance.
A spokesman for the force said: ‘The appeal tribunal is an independent body to hear appeals against the findings of internal misconduct proceedings against police officers.
‘They are not linked to South Wales Police, and operate independently to ensure fair and impartial decision-making.
‘The independent tribunal panel upheld grounds one and two of former PS Davies’s appeal, overturned the original decision, and made its own decision on the conduct.
‘They concluded that two standards – use of force and discreditable conduct – had been breached, and the only appropriate outcome was one of dismissal without notice. This decision reflects that of the original misconduct hearing panel.’
Daily Mail has contacted South Wales Police for comment.
The case echoes that of police officer Lorne Castle, 46, who is appealing against a Dorset Police decision to sack him for gross misconduct.
Mr Castle was found to have used disproportionate force during the arrest of a 15-year-old boy in Bournemouth in January 2024.
Lorne Castle, 46, is appealing against a Dorset Police decision to sack him for gross misconduct after he tackled a knife-carrying teenager
A Stanley-like knife fell from the boy’s waistband during his arrest, but a misconduct panel said PC Castle – who put his hand in the teen’s face and on his neck and jabbed his finger at him – failed to act with self-control or show the boy ‘courtesy and respect’.
His dismissal came months after Mr Castle won a national lifesaving award for saving an elderly lady from a flooded river.
The father-of-three said of his decision to appeal: ‘I was sacked, left with no job, a family to look after and no job prospects.
‘I want my name cleared. I feel that I have been treated really unfairly. I have been an exemplary officer for over 10 years.’
Dorset Police has previously said of the dismissal: ‘The panel found that PC Castle failed to act with self-control, did not treat the boy with courtesy or respect.
‘His shouting, swearing, finger pointing, taking hold of the boy’s face and throat and suggested use of leg restraints was not necessary, reasonable or proportionate.’
A video clip of the incident, released by the force, shows the officer tackling the 15-year-old boy to the ground before taking hold of the teenager’s face and throat while repeatedly swearing and shouting at him.
As the boy protests, crying ‘what have I done?, the officer shouts ‘stop screaming like a little b****, do you understand that? Shut up’, before telling him: ‘Stop resisting or I’m going to smash you. Do you understand?’ The officer then told the youth he was being arrested on suspicion of assault.
A former Dorset Police and Crime Commissioner later branded the sacking an ‘overreaction’ and accused his former force of going ‘woke’.
Martyn Underhill said he found it ‘scary’ how Dorset Police behaved, saying that while the officer deserved to be interviewed and disciplined, they were wrong to dismiss him without notice for gross misconduct.
