UK cops pay up for dumping Indian youth in bin

A teenage boy of Indian origin has received thousands of pounds in compensation from the British police after it emerged that one of its officers dumped him into a rubbish bin in London.

After a probe by the Independent Police Complaints Commission proved that the officer had carried out the act, the Scotland Yard have paid out about 4,000 pounds to 15-year-old Anop Singh, the Daily Mail reported on Friday.

"We had received a complaint and an out-of-court settlement was reached," a spokesperson for the Metropolitan Police was quoted as saying.

The teenager was hoisted by a Metropolitan Police officer who put him feet-first in the bin. The incident, triggered by an exchange of words between the boy and cops, was captured on a cell phone video by one of Singh's friends.

The incident occurred in a park at Stoke Newington in north London in October 2005 when some officers involved were investigating reports of youths throwing conkers at members of the public and Singh and his friend were filming the incident.

"The actions of the police officers, including the one who had dumped Singh in the bin, were clearly foolish but not malicious," IPCC Commissioner for London Deborah Glass, who headed the investigation, was quoted as saying.

However, the officer who had dumped the teenager into the litter bin escaped criminal charges and kept his job. The commission gave a written warning to him and one of his colleagues who was also present on the spot.

Singh, a resident of Stamford Hill, told the daily that the money would never make up for the "humiliation and distress" he had suffered in these two years. He said he was advised by his solicitor to accept the money.

"But, it's not about the money. If I had done what that police officer did I'm sure I would have ended up in prison. I would rather he had been punished properly for what he did to me. It was the worst thing that ever happened to me," he said.

"I can't stand the fact that he got away with it and that he could do it to someone else," Singh said.

His father, a car mechanic, Gurdev Singh, said: "We're not satisfied and I will always be angry about the way my son was tossed around like a piece of rubbish. The officer should have been sacked."