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Evening Standard
Evening Standard
World
Tom Ambrose

Man who hit police officer with metal pole in Kingston jailed

Parker received a four year prison sentence

(Picture: Metropolitan Police)

A man who beat a police contable with a metal pole while trying to bite other officers during a frenzied attack has been jailed for four years.

Darren Parker, 43, of Haylett Gardens in Kingston, pleaded guilty to three counts of actual bodily harm (ABH) against a woman, and one count of assault on an emergency worker.

Police called to reports of a domestic disturbance found a “visibly distressed” woman in her 30s outside his house at 2.40pm on October 31, 2020.

She had serious face and neck injuries and told officers she had been held hostage there overnight while Parker repeatedly assaulted her until she escaped.

Parker was found in a “highly agitated state” and was armed with a metal police when police entered the building.

He refused to drop the weapon and began hitting himself over the head with it after a Taser gun has no physical effect on him.

While attempting to arrest Parker, police constable Andy Cougar, a response officer on the South West Command Unit, was struck over the head with the pole.

He also verbally threatened and tried to bite other officers at the scene. It was later established Parker had attacked the victim several times since 2019.

PC Cougar was back out on patrol the same dayMetropolitan Police

PC Cougar, the officer who was assaulted before returning to duty the same day, said: “I’ll leave it to the public to imagine how terrifying it is to have to arrest a man like Parker who had a long history of violence.

“He was armed with a metal pole, high on class A drugs and two Taser activations had no effect on him.

“While arresting him, he continued to fight for several minutes, leaving me physically exhausted. I took punches to my face and head from Parker who was out of control. It was one of those incidents you never forget.”

Police constable James Driver, the investigating officer, said “Darren Parker showed extreme levels of violence over a sustained period of time leaving the victim with physical injuries and lasting mental trauma.

“He had no other option but to plead guilty for all matters as the evidence against him was insurmountable.

“Thanks to the victim and members of the public who came forward and provided evidence in the investigation.”

Parker was also given a restraining order to prevent him seeing or contacting the victim of his assault.

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