The Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC), a police watchdog in the UK, is probing allegations made by Zayna Iman, a 38-year-old Pakistani woman who claims she was stripped, drugged, and sexually assaulted while in the custody of Greater Manchester Police (GMP).

The victim alleged that the incident occurred during her detention at Pendleton Police Station in February 2021.

According to the Independent, two hours of CCTV footage from her 40-hour detention are missing, while medical records show evidence of sexual injuries.

Iman’s complaint is one of three recent allegations of unjustified strip searches against GMP.

It is worth mentioning here that Iman was taken into custody after she allegedly knocked the glasses off a female officer’s face.

Disturbing CCTV footage from her cell, received via a subject access request, showed three female officers carrying unconscious Iman into her cell.

The footage shows her being strip-searched and left unclothed for hours. In response to the charges, Iman stated that she was being restrained despite not being responsive.

Declaring the charges as ‘serious,’ the IOPC stated that they are potentially damaging to public trust in the police force.

Catherine Bates, Regional Director of IOPC, said that the organization is conducting an independent investigation into the allegations, including the examination of all available video evidence.

GMP Deputy Chief, Constable Terry Woods, also assured the police’s commitment to transparency, stating that GMP is cooperating with the IOPC investigation.

Further raising concerns, a medical report following Iman’s release from police custody suggested Iman suffered an acute psychotic episode possibly linked to a date rape drug, resulting in a sexual assault.

The report’s findings, coupled with the missing footage, have intensified scrutiny of the GMP’s conduct.

GMP, in its response, denied these claims, arguing that one of the four discs containing CCTV footage of Iman’s detention was corrupted.

However, by the time the corruption of the disc was found, the original footage on the servers had been overwritten due to standard retention policies.

Another woman, Sinead Foley, claimed that she was forcibly stripped and left naked in a custody cell by Birmingham police for 16 hours.

Source: Pro Pakistani