Humberside Police ‘lift the tape’ to reveal life inside the cells

Humberside Police ‘lift the tape’ to reveal life inside the cells

Humberside Police have ‘lifted the police tape’ to give members of the public a chance to see what it’s like to spend a night in the cells.

Often referred to as “the bin”, “the dungeons”, “the pokey” or on rare occasions “Hotel Birchin/Clough”, the custody suites are complex and high-tech buildings specially designed to safely house those suspected of a crime.

Cameras, alarms and equipment are all “carefully planned” to ensure the safety of detainees and staff alike.

Police Officers and Detention Officers from the facility spoke about what it is really like to work in custody, in an interesting, eye-opening and at times a little disgusting interview.

They are responsible for ensuring the safety of those suspected of crime, whilst the investigative teams carrg out necessary investigations in the cases.

“Without wanting to sound cliché, you really do have to expect the unexpected. It doesn’t matter what a person may have been brought in for, they may seem completely fine one minute but in a split-second chaos can unfold.

“It is definitely eye opening and challenging, that is for sure. We deal with members of the public from all walks of life, some who we see periodically, as well as those who are first time offenders, you never know who’s coming in.”

“We have to deal with a whole range of bizarre, and sometimes disgusting, incidents. For example, on one occasion, after being processed, a detainee made numerous attempts to assault us and, in preparation to confront us, used his own faecal matter as war paint smearing it onto his face whilst in his cell.”

“We also have many people who try to conceal items about their person, whether that be a phone, weapon, drugs and on occasion alcohol. I’ll let you use your imagination as to their hiding spots, but we have to make sure that these are retrieved to prevent them harming themselves or us.

“We’ve also had several individuals use their time in our custody to, how shall I put it, inappropriately touch themselves – yes you heard that right!”

Talking about their process of detaining potential suspects they added: “Every one of our detainees goes through the same processing procedure. Once they are brought into custody they are checked in, assessed, searched and, if required, strip searched for their own personal safety.

“Once they have been checked in, they are escorted to the ID suite where they have their custody picture taken followed by fingerprints and DNA swabs, in some circumstances we also take a breath sample from them.

“Depending on that individual person’s needs and the offence that they have been arrested on suspicion of, they are then escorted to one of our various different types of cell.

“When needed, to ensure no DNA evidence is lost when offences such as rape and sexual assault are alleged, the detainee will be taken to a “dry cell”. This means that they do not have access to the toilet or running water in their cell. If they do require the toilet, one of our officers will escort them to the facility ensure that they are unable to tamper with any potential evidence.

“We also have cells specially built for people that have medical conditions or other issues. For example, we have cells with wider windows which can be used for anyone who suffers from claustrophobia, as well as a separate corridor for vulnerable detainees.”