WARNING: CONTAINS IMAGES THAT SOME READERS MAY FIND DISTRESSING
‘Traumatic’ footage of a woman being restrained by an employee at a shop in London has sparked protests.
Footage of an altercation at Peckham Hair and Cosmetics in Rye Lane, south London, showed a man appearing to hold a woman by her throat as she was escorted from the building.
The woman was later arrested on suspicion of assault, before being bailed pending further enquiries, the Metropolitan Police confirmed.
Sohail Sindo, the shopkeeper in the video, has claimed the woman assaulted him first, telling ITV News she was trying to leave with products she hasn't paid for.
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In the wake of the video surfacing online, protests have been taking place outside the shop amid criticism for the woman’s arrest.
Many people were heard chanting: “You touch one. You touch all.”
Sistah Space, a charity which supports women of African and Caribbean heritage, told Sky News: "What we all saw in that video was traumatic. People do not understand how triggering this is to watch, much less to experience.
"This Black woman was attacked and there is no excuse for it, to add insult to injury she was arrested and the perpetrator was left alone at the scene of the crime.
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"She has been failed by the police and violently attacked by a criminal with no accountability."
Runnymede Trust, which focuses on racial justice and equality, also commented: “We’re absolutely horrified by the recent incident at Peckham Hair and Cosmetics. We must work to root out the violence against black women, which is so normalised in our society.”
A spokesperson for the Met said: “We are aware of a protest outside the shop and officers are in touch with the organisers. We appeal for people to remain calm while we carry out a full investigation.”
According to MyLondon, the video was recorded by 18-year-old Edilenny Douteo, who had been at the shop buying products with a friend when the incident happened.
“I saw the lady, they were shouting at each other from the beginning,” she said.
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“She was asking for a refund and they told her that is not possible. So she went to the shop and she told them that, if you’re not gonna get my refund, I want to get what I’m supposed to get for my money.
“When she tried to leave the shop and then the guy pushed her. He pushed her out and then he became aggressive.
"I saw everything but I didn't record from the beginning because I was like, 'yeah, he's not gonna do anything because she's a woman'. She's like, my size, 5’2 / 5’3. So he's not gonna do anything.
"Then I saw the guy becoming aggressive, and he has strangled her very, very badly. As you can see in the video. He has strangled her and he dragged her into the shop and she tried to take him away from her but she couldn't."
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London Mayor Sadiq Khan said he knew Londoners felt ‘concerned’ by ‘recent events in a shop in Peckham’.
He added: “I'm in touch with the Met Police and am urgently seeking further information."
LADbible has reached out to Peckham Hair and Cosmetics for comment.
Jess Hardiman