Dashcam footage shows policeman ‘grabbing Portuguese sprinter Ricardo Dos Santos before letting go when he realises he is being recorded’ during stop and search

• Ricardo Dos Santos was stopped by police on the A40 in west London in August
• He has now unveiled new footage in an interview with Labour MP Dawn Butler 

New dashcam footage shows the moment a policeman appears to grab Portuguese sprinter Ricardo Dos Santos during a stop and search – only to let go when he realises he is being recorded. 

In an interview with Labour MP Dawn Butler, Dos Santos described in detail the clips filmed by his Tesla when he was stopped by members of the Metropolitan Police on August 14, 2022 for allegedly being on his phone. 

The videos, taken from four different angles, show the officers grab Dos Santos and brandish a baton – but their ‘aggression’ stops when one policeman points to a camera. 

The 28-year-old believes the stop by the nine officers, as he was travelling eastbound on the A40 in west London, could be racially motivated. 

He said: ‘I don’t feel safe. You’re supposed to feel safe around the police.

In an interview with Labour MP Dawn Butler, Ricardo Dos Santos described in detail the clips filmed by his Tesla

‘That’s why I’m fighting to make sure others don’t feel the same as I did.’ 

He added that he still has four outstanding complaints against the police force – as a result of a culmination of similar incidents in which he was stopped by the police. 

In the new footage, first broadcast on Saturday in the Byline Times, Dos Santos told Butler he was the designated driver on a night out with friends as he doesn’t drink. 

After dropping his friends home and charging his Tesla, the footage shows a police car drive behind Dos Santos at 2.55am. 

The clip shows the moment the officer looks directly inside the car. As Butler watches the video, she comments: ‘He makes sure to look into the car to see who’s driving. And he sees that it’s a black guy and he puts the lights on.’

Dos Santos said he stopped the car once he felt safe to do so and immediately two police officers ran over to his car. 

Before they even exchange a word with him, the footage shows an officer take out his baton after not being able to open the Tesla doors and believing they are locked. 

Dos Santos told MP Butler in the Byline Times: ‘The officer on the right was the more aggressive one. He was ready to do whatever. 

The video showed the moment that the police officer pointed to a camera recording the incident

The officers reportedly let go of Dos Santos after they realised his Tesla was recording

The athlete phoned his partner Bianca Williams (pictured together) so she could log into the car’s cameras 

‘He tried to open the door but doesn’t know how to open the door. That’s when he goes to take his baton out to smash the glass because he thinks that the car’s locked.’

Butler commented: ‘He looks like he wants to fight you.’ 

At this moment, two other police cars arrive at the scene and Dos Santos called his partner, fellow athlete Bianca Williams, to ask her to log into the car’s cameras so she could watch what was happening. 

Fearing he would be beaten up, Dos Santos then told the officers they were being recorded by the car – and immediately their attitude appears to shift. 

Mr Dos Santos added: ‘I told them because I had a very important competition at the end of the week. 

‘I didn’t want anything to happen to me because I wanted to compete. 

‘When they heard it they changed their tone as well. This officer is grabbing me… his colleague comes and you’ll see he points at the camera and whispers to him and says “the car’s recording”. 

‘He looks, he lets go of my hand and he walks off… I started laughing at him because if it wasn’t for the cameras you guys would have done anything and everything.

‘What angered me most is the demeanor of the officers… they knew that this was pointless now.’ 

The policeman allegedly points to the camera, whispering to his fellow officer that the car is recording. He drops his grip on the sprinter and the officers step away from him. 

Butler, who has herself been pulled over for a search by police, said Dos Santos’s decision to tell the officers they were being recorded could have been a ‘life-saving’ measure. 

Dos Santos had initially posted about the incident on Twitter in August. 

A police car pulls in front of Mr Dos Santos as he drives in London in August 

Mr Dos Santos replied to the Met statement: ‘Hmm yes only showing part because the rest will be with my lawyer. Also no mention of why I took a little longer to stop’

Mr Dos Santos and Ms Williams pictured during an interview with the BBC following the first incident in Maida Vale, west London, on July 4, 2020

He wrote on the social media platform: ‘Not surprised I had to go through this again. Whilst driving home last night 7 armed @metpoliceuk officers stopped me because they thought I was on my phone whilst driving. 

‘At their request I pulled over when safe to do so. After I stopped two officers ran towards either side of the car, one fist clenched banged on my window and tried opening the car door. 

‘Not knowing how to use a Tesla handle he took out his baton out of frustration ready to smash the glass.’ 

In July 2020, footage of Ms Williams and Mr Dos Santos being searched and handcuffed was widely shared on social media, with Ms Williams later accusing the police of racially profiling them.

After the search, details of the couple’s three-month-old baby were also stored on a police database called Merlin, used to record information on children who become known to the authorities.

Mr Dos Santos said he bought a Tesla after the 2020 stop to decrease his likelihood of being pulled over by the police.  

At the start of the interview in the Byline Times, MP Dawn Butler said black people are nine times more likely to be stopped and searched – and six times more likely to be stopped while driving. 

Ricardo Dos Santos specialises in the 400 metres. He reached the final for the event in the 2018 European Championships. 

His partner, Bianca Williams, is also a sprinter and competed for England in the 2014 commonwealth games.  

In a statement the Metropolitan Police said: ‘At about 04.00hours on Sunday, 14 August, armed officers were on routine patrol in a marked police vehicle.

‘They saw a car travelling eastbound on the A40 Westway and were concerned the driver may be using a mobile phone at the wheel.

‘The officers clearly indicated for the car to pull over but it failed to do so and they called for further assistance. The driver stopped about five minutes later in Orsett Terrace W2, and the officers spoke to him about why they wanted to stop the vehicle.

‘Following the conversation, the vehicle was allowed on its way.’

MailOnline has contacted the Metropolitan Police for further comment on the new footage.  

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