A man who tweeted last weekend about an alleged incident of racist bullying by Transport for London and the Metropolitan police has lodged a formal complaint with those agencies.
The man's lawyers confirmed in a statement to BuzzFeed and on Twitter that a formal complaint was lodged today with the Met and TfL.
We can now confirm that we have lodged formal complaints with the Metropolitan Police & TFL on behalf of our client @PsykoUK
The complaint has been forwarded to the Borough Commander of Redbridge, the DCI with conduct of the investigation & Scotland Yard - @PsykoUK
This is in connection with the incident on 29 August 2014 as publicised on Twitter by @PsykoUK
His tweets about the incident went viral last weekend, receiving thousands of retweets and sparking a discussion on Twitter about racism in Britain.
The man, whose name has not been confirmed, although he goes by Psymon L'Amour on his Tumblr page, claimed to have intervened in a disagreement between a TfL official and three young girls on a bus in the London borough of Redbridge.
He claimed that the TfL official then phoned the police to say he was being threatened.
So basically I asked an @TfLOfficial for his badge number he then called police to say he was being threatened and I tried kill him...
He then tweeted that "2-3 minutes later, 3 police cars, 1 bike, 8 officers & 4 revenue protection officers surrounded me & tried [to] bully me".
The man claims to have video evidence of racial abuse by one of the Met officers. He has not yet shared the videos, but told BuzzFeed that he plans to do so in a few days' time.
I also have a video of a metropolitan police officer @metpoliceuk saying people like me (?) have the mental capability of an animal..
The @metpoliceuk who then hid his badge number compared my people (?) to planet of the apes and said I would be arrested if...
A few days later, he claimed to have been unlawfully detained.
I was unlawfully detained, racially abused & physically assaulted by @MPSRedbridge & @metpoliceuk due to false reports by @TfLOfficial...
I had a valid ticket, identification, several eyewitnesses but @MPSRedbridge covered badge numbers, threatened witnesses & harassed me.
He then said the police had no grounds to charge or arrest him.
Police still had no grounds to charge/search/arrest me, so held me whilst they contacted various agencies (UKBA, BTP etc) looking for cause.
The RPO then changed his story (with assistance from the police) saying I look like a threat (terrorist) & entered the bus illegally.
In one tweet, the man shared a photo of an officer, who, he claimed, "stated my people (?) deserve such treatment & it isn't my business to question them".
I'm going to find out what I'm being charged with via post (seriously) then have to attend court & answer for my crimes (?)
He alleged that police harassment continued online and at his family home.
Soon after I shared my story on social media, my accounts were blocked and officers tried to use intimidation tactics at the family home.
The man expressed frustration and thanked the support he received from friends, family, and strangers online.
If you are of colour...know the law, your rights & are educated the authorities will try to break your spirit & destroy you mentally.
I'm quite thankful for the response I've received online & the support from family, friends, lawyers, my rugby team and everyone else. Love.
He told BuzzFeed that "a lot of police officers misuse their powers on a daily basis and people are genuinely scared to speak out about it".
He added that he believes it is "important that more people are aware" of experiences such as his, and went on to say that "judging from some of the responses I've had, this is a very common occurrence."
The Redbridge borough police attempted to reach out to the man via Twitter on Sunday evening, but received no response from him.
@PsykoUK would welcome the opportunity to discuss this matter. Ring 101 and leave contact details for GPC Redbridge.
The Metropolitan police told BuzzFeed on Wednesday, before the formal complaint was filed, that they were aware of the incident, and that "an investigation is under way".
They said the investigation is "at an early stage" and that they could not comment any further at the moment. They added that the Met encourages anybody who feels they have been mistreated in some way to make a formal complaint.
BuzzFeed reached out to the Met again today, but it does not yet have an official statement regarding the complaint.
Many commenters shared their outrage over the incident the man depicted in his tweets on Twitter.
Imagine the amount of Black people harassed by the @metpoliceuk but didn't tweet it like @PsykoUK. How many more? Seriously
@PsykoUK Utterly astounded & outraged. Well done for forward-thinking & capturing it all. I wish you complete vindication & their punishment
@PsykoUK just read your story mate, disgraceful treatment. Hope you get the justice you deserve, racism has no place in the police force.
BuzzFeed will continue to follow this story as it develops.
We are currently awaiting further comment from TfL.