The family of an Aboriginal teenager who was mistakenly pulled from a bus and arrested in the nation’s capital have labelled the incident a clear example of racial profiling and police brutality.
The 17-year-old had been travelling on the way to visit family when the bus was stopped by police cars on November 12.
His family said ACT police racially profiled the boy, removing him from the bus with guns drawn and handcuffing him before comparing a photo on a phone and realising they had the wrong person.
“That is not policing, that is abuse, a clear example of police brutality and racial profiling at its finest,” his family said on Thursday morning.
“A child who had never committed a crime was treated like a criminal, he was treated like a threat and he was treated as less than human.”
Reading a statement to the media, the boy’s aunties Mikaila McEwan and Kristie Peters said the incident was a gross violation of the child’s human rights.
“The officers pointed a gun … dragged him out, slammed him onto the ground … causing him pain and difficulty breathing,” they said.
“Even after admitting they had the wrong boy, the officer still searched him.”
ACT Police said they had been responding to reports of a person with a knife at a shopping centre in Woden.
They received information that a young person who matched the description of the offender was on a bus.
Officers arrested the teenager “for a short period” before realising he was not the person they were looking for, police said in a statement.
“We acknowledge this would have been a very distressing incident for the young person and the other passengers on the bus and we apologise for this.
“Given police were responding to multiple eyewitness reports of an active armed offender in a heavily populated part of Canberra, officers acted with the immediate aim of preventing a worst-case scenario from occurring – further harm to members of the public.”
The family wants the officers involved to be investigated and stood down while the inquiry process takes place.
They have also asked to see the body-worn camera footage of the incident, for a formal acknowledgement of the racial profiling by police and an apology.
Indigenous community advocates have labelled the incident outrageous and unacceptable.
“I’m appalled, it’s absolutely disgusting,” Winnunga Nimmityjah Aboriginal Health and Community Services chief executive Julie Tongs said.
“If that had been a busload of black kids, would they have done what they did to the only white kid on that bus? I don’t think so.
“They need to take a long, serious look at themselves.”
Acting ACT Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Children and Young Peoples commissioner Barbara Causon said the incident would have a ripple effect in the community, influencing the way young people saw police.
“I understand that police have a very important role to play in keeping our community safe, but this innocent young boy was not safe,” she said.
“He was hurt, he was traumatised, he was not safe.”
Police said they had met with the teenager and his family to discuss the incident.
A complaint had been received and it would be reviewed through the Australian Federal Police’s professional standards command.
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