A father told yesterday how police made a dawn raid on his
home - to arrest his 12-year- old son following a "scuffle"
with another boy.
Taher Faleh, 31, said he was woken at 6am by two officers hammering
at his front door. They insisted on waking his son Dean themselves.
When the worried father objected to them being the first to
walk into the bedroom Dean shared with four young siblings,
he claimed they threatened to arrest him as well.
By the time Dean was led away, the other youngsters were all
"scared and crying", their father said.
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The schoolboy was taken to Sheffield's Attercliffe police station
where his DNA and fingerprints were taken and he was released
on bail at 9.30am pending further inquiries into the alleged
assault months earlier.
Recalling the incident at his home in Shiregreen, Sheffield,
the father of six said: "I was woken by the knocking. I
went downstairs and they said they were the police and they
had come for my son.
"I couldn't believe what I was hearing. I thought it was
a joke. But they were ready to smash the door down so I let
them in.
"I told the two policemen I would wake him up. I didn't
want them going upstairs and frightening my children.
"They said they had to arrest him from his bed. I stood
in front of them on the stairs because I was knew they would
be frightened if strangers burst into their bedroom.
"I was adamant the police officers shouldn't violate my
children's space. In my culture it's a sin to violate other
people's space, especially children.'
"But they said if I didn't move, they would arrest me
for obstruction of justice. They refused to allow me or his
mother to wake him up and they insisted on going into my children's
bedroom, where there were four children under ten asleep, and
waking him up.
"I have six children, they were all scared and crying.
There was a big commotion."
Mr Faleh said he phoned the police switchboard when the officers
were in his house but could find no one willing to help him
or discuss the arrest of his son.
Full
article here.
