A man who died after being restrained by several police officers had repeatedly said “I can’t even breathe” during the incident, body cam footage played at an inquest into his death has shown.
Neal Saunders, 39, died on 3 September 2020 after he was restrained by Thames Valley police officers at his father’s home in Langley in Berkshire.
The inquest jury heard that his father, Ronald Saunders, had called police to his home after his son was displaying symptoms of paranoia and acute behavioural disturbance, which may have been related to drug use.
Saunders was arrested on suspicion of assault, and then handcuffed and restrained by several officers shortly before his death following a cardiac arrest.
In police body cam footage shown at the inquest on Tuesday, Saunders was shown to be clearly agitated, and was repeatedly told by officers to calm down. He was then physically restrained by five officers on the floor by their body weight; one officer is heard saying to his colleague: “Get pressure on his legs while I take mine off … put all of your weight on his legs.”
The footage also showed Saunders’ face to be positioned towards the ground a number of times.
Later in the footage, Saunders tells the officers “I can’t even breathe” several times. The officers continued to restrain him and he was not allowed to sit up when asked if he could.
Saunders then appeared to be unresponsive. One officer was captured saying: “He’s not chatty any more.” Shortly after, paramedics were called to the scene and Saunders was taken to hospital by ambulance, where he later died. He was restrained by the officers for a total of 75 minutes.
The position in which Saunders was carried down to the ambulance may have also further obstructed his ability to breathe and contributed to the cardiac arrest he suffered shortly before his death.
Saunders was described as having been a “very special” and “likable” person by his family. In a statement, his father, Ronald, had said: “Neal was so loved in the community, and he still is … I get bombarded by people who knew Neal, they always come over to me to tell me how much he is still missed.
“Neal was such a likable boy. Once he got to know you, he would relax, and you could see he was such a character. He was like a brother to so many people and is sorely missed by us all.” His father also described him as a generally healthy man.
The inquest continues, and is expected to last three weeks.
