Investigation is opened over the treatment of black athlete and her partner by Met police

The Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) is investigating five police officers that stopped and handcuffed Bianca Williams, a British athlete, and her partner back on the 4th of July.

The disciplinary investigation will assess whether the officers involved were within their professional standards in their use of force and authority, or whether the couple were "treated less favourably because of their race".

The accounts of officers involved and the statements made by the Metropolitan Police after the incident will also be examined.

The 26-year-old Team GB sprinter and her partner Ricardo dos Santos, a Portuguese sprinter, were stopped on their drive home by Met officers and handcuffed while their infant son was still in the car.

The IOPC will investigate the specific treatment of Mr Dos Santos in the incident, for example, how he was held in handcuffs after he was searched and whether there were grounds for this. For the treatment of Williams, the watchdog will investigate officers who took hold of her and did not ask cooperation for the search as well as the continued handcuffing of Williams even after the search.

Following the news of the investigation, Mr Dos Santos said that the couple "were given no notice by the IOPC" about the investigation being made public today. He said that they had "not had any direct contact from the IOPC or any information to understand why they are only considering misconduct and not gross misconduct".

He added that the couple would respond to the announcement of the investigation soon.