A witness to a fatal collision on the A617 near Upton, who alleged false imprisonment after he was detained at the scene and had his car seized, is be paid £2,000 by Nottinghamshire Police

Nottinghamshire Police is to pay out £2,000 to a man who, after witnessing a fatal collision, was detained at the scene and had his car seized.

On May 15, 2018, Mr Sohale Rahman was driving back to his home in Norfolk when he witnessed a fatal collision between a BMW car and a cyclist at the junction of the A617 and Main Road, Upton, at around 9.45pm.

The BMW stopped after the collision, while Mr Rahman pulled over before the scene. He called 999 and directed traffic away from the deceased cyclist.

Despite what Mr Rahman describes as “clear evidence” that it was the BMW which had struck the cyclist, he said the police officers who attended the scene told him that they needed to be sure he was not involved in a murder.

Mr Rahman was held at the scene, without being arrested, until nearly 1am and says he was then told his vehicle was being seized in order to check for debris underneath it.

He was then taken to Newark Police Station, and at 1.30am police called a taxi to take him to his home more than an hour and a half away — which resulted in him having to pay a £174 taxi fare — and he also incurred costs for a hire vehicle for the following ten days, as the force still had possession of his own car.

When Nottinghamshire Police notified Mr Rahman to collect his vehicle, he claimed the force required immediate collection otherwise it would charge for storage.

Mr Rahman — who has “no doubt” he was a victim of police racism as he explained he was the only person to have their vehicle seized despite another van driving through the debris — raised a complaint with the force following the incident, which was rejected.

He then, in 2024, engaged the services of Iain Gould of DPP LAW, an expert solicitor in actions against the police, to issue court proceedings against Nottinghamshire Police.

Mr Rahman said that “Nottinghamshire Police officers’ behaviour that night puts a stain on the police force as a whole”.

“They ended up paying me more than I had originally asked for to compensate for my losses plus they had to pay my legal costs. In future, I will never stop to assist in any incident in which I am not involved. It’s just not worth it.”

His claim alleged false imprisonment and trespass to goods, and was settled by the chief constable, with an agreement to pay Mr Rahman £2,000 plus his legal costs.

A Nottinghamshire Police spokesman said: “Mr Rahman was identified as the sole occupant of an Audi TT that was in the vicinity of a fatal collision along the A617 near Upton on May 15, 2018.

“Due to possible debris damage and the position of his vehicle, it was necessary for the vehicle to be seized for a temporary time to ensure the underneath of the vehicle had no cross contamination.

“As is standard procedure, Mr Rahman was spoken to under caution at the scene but was not arrested.

“A complaint was subsequently received from Mr Rahman and a compensation claim has now been settled.

“All cases which deal with claims for compensation are reviewed carefully and payments are only made where it is considered appropriate to do so.”