Met should probe handling of 'Putney Pusher' case, police watchdog says

The police watchdog has said the Metropolitan Police's professional standards unit should investigate the force's handling of a case in which a man suspected of pushing a woman into the path of a bus on Putney Bridge was found dead.

Nicholas Brandram was found dead at his London home on 15 September. His family said he took his own life after the "immense pressure" of a police investigation.

The 44-year-old was under suspicion of being the jogger who pushed a woman into the path of a bus during a run on Putney Bridge in west London in May 2017.

The Met police made a mandatory referral to the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) following the banker's death.

In a statement, the IOPC said: "After carefully considering the referral, we have decided that an investigation is required and that the Met's Directorate of Professional Standards should conduct it.

"We have recommended the review considers matters including the necessity and proportionality of arrest, what engagement was there with the media and considerations made in relation to Mr Brandram's welfare and the relevant policy."

The police watchdog added that if the Met's investigation did not find "any potential misconduct", the final report must be submitted to the IOPC for review.

The family of Nicholas Brandram insisted in an interview with the BBC that he was not the so-called "Putney pusher".

Ch Sup Dan Knowles said he recognised the "strain that being subject to a police investigation" could cause.

He confirmed that the Met's Directorate of Professional Standards would carry out the investigation.

The force said the investigation into the 2017 incident remained ongoing.

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