The Home Secretary has called for a “full and urgent explanation” after a police car was filmed being deliberately run over twice by a cow.
A video of the incident began circulating on social media this morning and shows a loose cow falling and skidding meters down a road after being hit by the vehicle.
As the animal appears to try to get up, the car approaches for a second time.
The cow’s head and part of its torso appear to be trapped under the front of the vehicle as two officers exit. A second police car can be seen on an adjacent street.
James Cleverly said in a post on X: “I can think of no reasonable need for this action.
“I have asked for a full and urgent explanation for this. It seems to be unnecessarily burdensome.”
Surrey Police issued a statement on the matter, saying they responded to reports of a loose cow in Staines-upon-Thames at around 8.55pm on Friday night.
The company received “numerous calls from the public reporting that a car was damaged” and that the animal was running into people, it said.
“Officers…over a period of hours tried a number of options to safely capture the cow,” the police statement read.
“Unfortunately, they were unsuccessful and the decision was made to stop them using a police car.”
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The cow was then transferred to a nearby farm with the help of the public in the early hours of this morning.
Sky News understands the animal is a calf that does not yet have a name.
Its owner does not know how the cow escaped and was only informed this morning.
The cow suffered a cut but did not break any bones and is back on the farm recovering.
The matter has been referred to the police professional standards department and the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) has been notified. A voluntary referral will be made in due course.
Chief Inspector Sam Adcock said: “I know this has caused distress and I would like to thank the community for their concern.
“The decision to use the police car was only taken after other methods to stop the cow failed.
“There will be an investigation into the actions that led to this, but our focus is always on ensuring the safety of the public.”
Police have asked for videos of the “harrowing” incident to be sent to them to help their investigation.
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