The Metropolitan police are to face an investigation after a man fell into a river and died after a pedal bike chase with officers.
The incident happened in Tottenham, north London, an area where police and community relations are tense.
The incident started around 9.15pm on Wednesday. The Met said officers from a specialist robbery squad were chasing suspects.
Police said the officers were cycling on patrol on the River Lee towpath between Ferry Lane and Markfield Park.
They spotted a group of males they thought were suspicious and arrested one, but two others fled on pushbikes and were chased.
One man ended up into the water and was pulled out by police, but the other male disappeared.
The Met say a body was recovered 12 hours later, on Thursday morning, from the water, which is part of the River Lee navigation system.
Police had called in boats and a helicopter to help find the man. They had looked in the dark for several hours, police say, with the search resuming in the morning.
Met commander Paul Brogden said: “I fully recognise the concern this incident will cause among members of the local community. The matter was referred by our directorate of professional standards to the Independent Office for Police Conduct who have confirmed that they are independently investigating this tragic incident, and how the males came to be in the water.
“Our thoughts are with the family of the deceased male and we will do everything we can to support the IOPC investigation.”
The Met said two males were arrested by officers on suspicion of possession of an offensive weapon and remained in custody.
In a statement, the Met said: “Officers approached a group of males, and one was detained. Two other males made off from police on pushbikes and were pursued by police also on bicycles.
“One of the males was retrieved from the water, which is part of the River Lee navigation system, and detained by officers.
“Despite their efforts, the other male could not be located.
“Officers on scene immediately alerted specialist marine policing teams who searched for the outstanding male for several hours overnight, with the assistance of colleagues from the national police air service.
“The search resumed in the early hours of this morning. At around 09.50 today Thursday, 8 October, police recovered the body of a male.
“Officers are working to identify him and establish whether he is the male concerned.”
Local residents saw a fleet of emergency vehicles respond to the incident.
In tweets on Wednesday evening, local police from Haringey said: “At around 2115hrs a male was seen to enter the water. He has not been seen since and an urgent search of the area is being undertaken … Nobody has been seen to exit the water subsequently.”
Ferry Lane is close to where the two males went into the water and where Mark Duggan was shot by police in 2011 in controversial circumstances.
Under the law the IOPC has to investigate incidents in which people die after contact with the police.
