Bedfordshire Police refers itself to watchdog after man in 80s arrested
Two uniformed officers responding to reports of a disturbance initially approached the wrong address by mistake
Bedfordshire Police has referred itself to the police watchdog after a man in his 80s was arrested on suspicion of assault on an emergency worker.
The force said two uniformed officers responding to reports of a disturbance in Potton at around 5am on Friday initially approached the wrong address by mistake.
In a series of tweets explaining the incident, the force said that as the two officers walked away from the property they were approached in the street by a resident holding a "wooden implement".
The officers called for back-up and "several other units" arrived.
The force said all these officers were in full uniform and in marked police vehicles.
"Before further units arrived, an altercation ensued where one of our officers tried to take the wooden implement from the resident, during which she sustained a cut to her face.
"A man in his 80s was arrested on suspicion of assault on an emergency worker," the force said on Twitter.
The man was taken into custody and has since been released under investigation, while police assess the evidence.
Detective Chief Superintendent Julie Henderson from Bedfordshire Police said: "We understand the concerns regarding this incident and are carrying out our own internal review.
"We have also voluntarily referred ourselves to the Independent Office for Police Conduct for full openness and transparency and to ascertain if there is any learning to be taken forward.
"Over the coming days the welfare of all those involved will be our primary concern."
The force later tweeted to clarify what was meant by the term "wooden implement", saying: "This was not a walking stick: we are describing it as something similar in size and shape to a rounders bat.
"It isn't a rounders bat, but is a wooden stick of that sort of size and shape."