This is the terrifying moment a cannabis smoker drives off dragging a police officer with him for nearly 100ft after being confronted about the smell coming from his car.
PCSO Kieron Poole shrieked in terror as Muhammad Nadeem, 18, slammed his foot down while the officer’s arms were trapped inside the driver’s side window.
Officer Poole had approached Nadeem’s car to question him about the stench of cannabis emanating from the black Seat Leon parked up outside houses in Smethwick, West Midlands, on January 25 last year.
Nadeem is seen on body-worn camera footage switching the ignition on and when Officer Poole reaches into the car to try and turn the engine back off, he starts driving away.
Muhammad Nadeem, then 18, is seen speeding off as PCSO Kieron Poole clings to the ignition switch of his hatchback
Muhammad Nadeem admitted assault occasioning actual bodily harm, dangerous driving and possession of an offensive weapon and will be sentenced at a later date. He dragged PCSO Kieron Poole for 100ft after being confronted outside a block of flats in Smethwick, West Midlands, on January 25, 2020
‘Stop,’ the police officer is heard yelling as he desperately tries to pull the keys out of the ignition while the hatchback lurches forward.
A harrowing ten seconds ensues as Officer Poole clings onto the car, fearing for his life, while Nadeem is seeing trying to wrench his hand off the ignition switch.
But Officer Poole heroically manages to pull the key from the ignition and the car is brought to a halt.
Nadeem then leaps from the car and sprints away, only for the PCSO to back him into a dead end in the housing estate.
‘Stay there now,’ Officer Poole yells at the suspect.
But Nadeem rushes towards the officer and barges past, sending the PCSO stumbling backwards and his cap flying to the ground.
The PCSO stays on Nadeem’s tail and is heard telling the control tower over the radio where the chase is leading.
The chase continues for another five minutes but the exhausted cannabis smoker is eventually only able to walk away from Officer Poole.
Soon back-up arrives, and two officers appear from a police car to arrest Nadeem.
Inside Nadeem’s hatchback police found a hammer and an axe, while the suspect had a small amount of cannabis on his person.
Nadeem, now 19, of Florence Road, Smethwick, was shown footage of the incident which took place last January.
He admitted it ‘doesn’t look good’ and conceded that he was ‘shocked’ by it.
He admitted assault occasioning actual bodily harm, dangerous driving and possession of an offensive weapon and will be sentenced at a later date.
PCSO Poole recounted how Nadeem had ‘seemed quite friendly at first’, but his demeanour quickly changed when he asked him about the drugs.
‘It all happened so quickly. Before I knew anything my arm was attached to the car and I was being propelled, hanging on the side, through a couple of branches, a good 20-30ft before I knew what was happening.’ Officer Poole said.
‘I shouted “Stop! Stop!”, but he wasn’t paying any attention. I knew I had to get the key out of the ignition.
‘If I didn’t, I could have gone under his tyres and I might not be here today. I decided I’m not going to let him sit back and get away with that. I’ve always been brought up to respect the police, and in that moment, I didn’t want him to get away with it.
‘I instinctively chased him. He was cornered and I was hoping he’d give up. Instead, he decided to rush towards me with a bottle and quite forcefully hit me at the side of the head with a plastic bottle. My adrenaline was going so I felt like I could carry on trying to pursue him.
‘He started walking quite casually up the street, but I didn’t want to get too close at that point thinking he could have a weapon, he’s already hit me over the head, he’s clearly going to resist, so my best course of action was to wait for the local neighbourhood units.’
Fortunately, Officer Poole only sustained a bruised arm.
He added: ‘It’s made me more cautious – I didn’t want to have a break from doing my job, I felt like that would have been more of a barrier to me. But I wanted things to be as normal as possible really because I didn’t want it to effect the way I worked within the community. ‘I’d like to thank the quick response of the neighbourhood officers who arrived within minutes to help me.’