Testimony of man arrested for eating ice cream on the beach

Radek Kotlarek moved from London to Wales with his family seven years ago for a peaceful life. But his treatment at the weekend by the Welsh police, he says, was more fragrant than Nazi or Communist-era German in his native Poland.

He told his story to Breitbart London:

My family has been on the edge for some time under confinement. We suffered illness and death among our relatives in Poland and my children – we have two boys – were particularly affected. Then, on Sunday, we took our oldest son, 17, for a short walk on his favorite beach, about 30 kilometers from where we live.

After our walk, we had an ice cream and in the parking lot we saw two policemen handing out tickets for violating Covid legislation. I didn’t think we had committed a crime. A police officer explained the rules for exercising away from home. I tried to explain to her that this break was essential for our mental health. But she didn’t seem very compassionate or understanding.

I asked ‘Am I being detained? Because otherwise I would like to enjoy the rest of my afternoon and you are harassing me. ‘

She asked me to give my name and when I refused – because I had not committed any crime – she arrested me.

I was handcuffed and taken to a police station in Wrexham. I was locked in an interrogation room. A police sergeant told me that I could hold on for 24 hours if I refused to cooperate.

I said, ‘I don’t consent. I took my family out for an ice cream. ‘

At that point, the police sergeant was very angry, frustrated and aggressive. He shouted in my face: ‘I am in charge and I give the orders.’ Then he told me that I would be searched, which really shocked me.

After about 45 minutes, two different policemen appeared. I said, ‘Please, can you loosen my right handcuff because it is too tight and is impeding my circulation?’ They refused. Then I said: ‘I need to use the bathroom’. They said, ‘Not until we’re done.’

I was taken to a custody cell where there was an exposed bathroom. I asked for some privacy and some toilet paper. The sergeant said, ‘Don’t play with him until we’re done.’

They asked me what was the size of my clothes. I told them that I was happy with my own clothes.

So they came in with scissors and said that if I didn’t cooperate, they would cut my clothes and forcefully remove them from me.

At that point, I agreed to do what they said. I was naked in front of them. Well, not totally naked: first I changed the top, then the bottom. But I would say that having your genitals exposed while two men look at you counts as naked.

It is the kind of thing you would expect in Nazi Germany – but not in a modern civilized democracy.

After three hours, I was released without charge and without penalty. Everything had been in vain.

Kotlarek’s case was taken up by a member of the Welsh Assembly, Neil McEvoy MS.