Comedian Mark Thomas wins £1,200 over police search

Police have paid compensation and apologised to the comedian and activist Mark Thomas after they admitted unlawfully searching him for looking "over-confident" at a demonstration.

The Metropolitan police stopped and searched Thomas after he gave a speech at a rally against the arms trade in 2007.



The police searched his shoulder bag and wallet for weapons, which they said could be used to cause criminal damage.

A police officer recorded on an official form that Thomas may have been carrying weapons as he had an "over-confident attitude". Nothing was found.

Mark Thomas pointing the law out to police previously.

"It may look like I lied to you, but in all honesty I told you the truth."

The officer said his shoulder bag "may contain such items due to the over-confident attitude of Mr Thomas". He is also said to have told Thomas he "appeared to know what you were talking about" at the rally. The officer added: "If we only stopped and searched people who looked nervous and shifty and didn't stop the ones who looked over-confident you would be able to get one past us," according to legal papers lodged by Thomas, which were not disputed by the police.

The Met paid £1,200 for "falsely imprisoning" Thomas for 12 minutes. He said: "£100 a minute is slightly more than my usual rate. If over-confidence is a reason for a stop-and-search Jonathan Ross should never leave his house."