Canberra man accuses police of racial profiling after arrest for trespassing at his own home

Tuck believes he was a victim of racial profiling after being arrested on his own premises last week. (ABC News: Adam Kennedy)

A Canberra man has lodged a formal complaint with ACT Policing after he was arrested, handcuffed and put into the back of a paddy wagon because police assumed he was trespassing.

Tuck, who does not wish to be identified by his full name, believes he was the victim of racial profiling as a result of the incident, which took place last week at his apartment complex in Narrabundah.

Recovering from an emergency cardiac issue and hospital stay last Thursday, June 27, Tuck decided to go and sit by the pool and barbecue area within his apartment complex, to get some sun, about midday.

Tuck, who holds multiple degrees including a Masters, and works in health policy for a Canberra organisation, was wearing a hoodie, slippers and fleece trackpants at the time, according to his official report.

It was then that things took a turn for the unexpected, when a neighbour, who had been outside washing his car, approached him and began demanding answers about what he was doing.

"I don't remember [a] greeting. The first thing I remember him asking me is, 'where are you from?'" Tuck said.

"I was confused at the question, because I wasn't sure if he was asking about my ethnic origin or whether he was asking about if I [live] within the complex.

"And while I was still trying to understand the question, he said: 'you're not supposed to be here'."

Tuck said from then on, the neighbour became increasingly "discourteous" when he refused to tell him where he lived and began asking his neighbour for the same details.

When his neighbour told him he was going to call the police, Tuck told him to go ahead, believing they would protect him from his neighbour's harassment.

Multiple officers, cars arrived to the scene

Within 15 minutes, Tuck said five police officers and three cars arrived to the complex, which he called "an extraordinary over-reaction".

Tuck said three officers approached him and began questioning him about where he lived.

He responded by pointing to his house, which backs onto the shared barbecue and pool facilities, and verbally telling the officers where it was located.

Tuck said his response wasn't acknowledged by police, who instead began asking him for photo identification.

"I didn't have my photo ID for obvious reasons ... I was at home. I wouldn't carry my ID with me at home," he explained.

"I said I did have my keys ... the keys, you know, by which I exited my townhouse, and the pool key by which I unlocked the swimming pool."

But the officers wouldn't accept this and told Tuck they'd need to see photo ID.

"I was offended at the suggestion that they would enter my house," he said.

"There was no search warrant. There was no report that there was anything illegal that they needed to search for in my house," he said.

Tuck admitted he wasn't "in a hurry" to move when he was told to get up, but did so and complied with their request.

He said he began to get nervous at this point, given the kind of police response he had so far received, even asking the officers if they were going to shoot him.

"Shortly after that, they began to basically escort me out of the barbecue area ... and I didn't take kindly to that, because I had a lawful right to be in the barbecue area," Tuck told the ABC.

As Tuck was escorted out of the barbecue area, he began filming the interaction.

He said at that point he and the officers were engaged in a "back and forth" argument.

The ABC has seen the footage.

Police say officer was injured

Tuck alleges things became physical when an officer grabbed his wrist, saying he was doing so because he had his phone in his face.

That same officer then arrested him on suspicion of trespassing.

"I was slammed onto the fence separating the barbecue from the swimming pool area," he said.

"I was restrained on my right shoulder, and then they began to handcuff me behind my back.

"I did not resist the arrest, I just gave up."

ACT Policing confirmed the arrest occurred and described Tuck's behaviour leading up to it as "belligerent".

"Due to the man’s behaviour, police had reasonable suspicion the man was trespassing and he was arrested," police said.

"As officers attempted to handcuff the man, he resisted, causing a minor injury to an officer’s hand."

But Tuck said he was in shock as he told the officers where his licence and wallet were located in his apartment and had his keys and phone taken away.

During that interaction, one of the officers cut his hand.

Tuck said he did not know how the injury occurred.

He claimed this officer then accused him of assaulting a police officer, a charge which was not laid by police.

During the search of his home, Tuck was locked in a paddy wagon for ten minutes, before the officers returned, and Tuck was unarrested.

Police have confirmed he was placed in a police vehicle while officers conducted checks on his address.

No charges have been laid, with police saying they believe the incident to be "completed".

Tuck says he now feels uncomfortable in his home

During the incident, Tuck said the officers also questioned him about whether he was intoxicated or had consumed marijuana, one saying his eyes were red and his voice appeared slurred.

He told the ABC he believes those assertions were intended to "strengthen the profile" they were trying to create.

And while Tuck says one of the officers told him the arrest had nothing to do with the colour of his skin, he doesn't believe that was the case.

"[They believed] that I was an unemployed youth ... you know, potentially of African or Indigenous descent, that was enjoying amenities unlawfully" he said.

"I think they just hoped that indeed it was a trespass to confirm the narrative they'd created."

Looking back now, he believes the police response was "an extraordinary overreaction".

"I suspect it was based on the description of [me], the suspect," he said.

Since the incident last week, Tuck said he has keenly felt the "indignity" of it.

Although he doesn't feel unsafe at home, he does feel uncomfortable.

He said while he had experienced racism before, he believed this was the most extreme example since he moved to Australia 17 years ago from Zimbabwe.

Since the incident, he has been taking comfort in the support he has received from people around him.

The ABC witnessed one neighbour at the complex approaching Tuck to express her dismay and shame at what had occurred.

She expressed her concern and apologies and invited Tuck and his family to come over for afternoon tea.

That interaction left Tuck visibly emotional, and he was hopeful it could form part of any story about his arrest.

Police confirm receipt of formal complaint

ACT police confirmed Tuck's complaint had been received, but they would not respond to detailed questions from the ABC about the incident, including whether that number of police officers being sent to that incident constituted a reasonable response.

A spokesperson for ACT Policing said the complaint was "currently being assessed in accordance with the AFP Complaints Management Framework".

Tuck said he was hopeful that his complaint would end up being treated seriously and investigated.

The territory's police minister, Mick Gentleman, has also been approached for comment.