Police officer charged over baton 'assault' in Coventry

A police officer has been charged with assaulting a man who was allegedly struck over the head with a baton.

PC Sunil Narr, of West Midlands Police, is charged with assault occasioning actual bodily harm, the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) said.

The charge is connected to an incident in the Hillfields area of Coventry, when a man was detained following a police pursuit.

PC Narr, 31, of Coventry, is due before Birmingham magistrates on Thursday.

West Midlands Police said the Coventry-based officer has not been suspended, but was "taken off front line duties."

The Crown Prosecution Service authorised the charge last month, the IOPC said.

In a statement, the IOPC said: "A West Midlands Police officer is due to appear in court charged with assault occasioning actual bodily harm following an incident in which a man suffered a wound to his head after allegedly being struck with a baton.

"Police Constable Sunil Narr has been charged in connection with an incident in the Hillfields area of Coventry early on 1 August last year (2017) when a man was detained following a police pursuit."