A mother of two was left to stay in a police custody cell for more than seven hours after she confiscated two iPads belonging to her children – and was accused of theft.
Vanessa Brown, a 50-year-old history teacher, revealed the ‘unspeakable devastation and trauma’ she suffered after being taken to Staines police station.
Ms Brown was searched and had custody photographs and fingerprints taken after taking away her daughters’ devices in an attempt to ensure they were not distracted from their studies.
Surrey Police, who also visited the children’s school, pulling one of Ms Brown’s daughters out of class, have since acknowledged their error. The force said they swooped after getting a report of an alleged theft from a man in his 40s.
Ms Brown was apprehended at her mother’s home in Cobham, Surrey, to which she was eventually returned only after a 12-hour ordeal that, due to her bail conditions, threatened to prevent her from seeing her children on Mother’s Day.
‘I find it quite traumatic even talking about this now,’ Ms Brown told LBC.
‘They were able to send a police car with police officers to my children’s school, they were able to send another police car or two to arrest me.
‘I know people are making reports of thefts, of assaults and very violent crimes in and around our neighbourhood, and they’re not getting a response for days.
Police said a man in his 40s had alerted them to the possible theft of the iPads, prompting a search for the devices.
‘A tracking device on the iPads showed that they were at the address and a 50-year-old woman from Cobham was arrested on suspicion of theft,’ said the spokesperson.
‘A search was then carried out using post-arrest powers and the iPads were located.
‘The woman was subsequently released on conditional bail while further enquiries were carried out.
‘The police bail conditions included not speaking to her daughters, who were connected to the investigation, while officers carried out their enquiries.
