‘Skins’ actor sues Met for false arrest claiming he was racially stereotyped

An award-winning actor is suing the Metropolitan Police for assault and false imprisonment after he was wrongly suspected of drug dealing.

Solicitors acting for Daniel Kaluuya, 24, who appeared in the TV teen drama Skins and the movie Johnny English Reborn, have lodged a High Court claim for up to £50,000 in damages.

He was taken off a bus in Camden Town, north London, pinned to the ground by four officers – one placing a boot on his head – and strip-searched at Kentish Town police station.

Papers submitted to the court allege Mr Kaluuya “was singled out because of officers racially stereotyping him”.

The legal papers reveal how he was returning home to Camden on 11 January 2010 when he was taken off a No?29 bus soon after boarding at about 8.45pm. Officers told him he fitted the description of someone acting suspiciously in the area, the claim states.

The papers claim a male and a female officer were “aggressive from the outset” and “intimidating”. The pair backed Mr Kaluuya against a shop window before pinning him to the floor and restraining him, helped by up to five colleagues.

Mr Kaluuya is suing Sir Bernard Hogan-Howe, the Met Commissioner, on behalf of the force, for “loss of liberty, personal injury, damage and humiliation”. The Met confirmed that the claim had been received.