A police car came down to stop where a man and a woman were involved in a “verbal altercation” on Kingston Bridge in south-west London at around 10.30pm on Friday night. After an allegation of theft, officers began to arrest the man – but he went into the water. Police say the man, who is believed to be in his 20s but has not been named, was not handcuffed at the time. The fire service, the RNLI, the Metropolitan Police marine unit and a helicopter were called to help rescue the man and his body was recovered from the water around two hours later. Rescuers tried to revive him, but he was pronounced dead. His family has said. The cordon is still in place on the Kingston Bridge and the search is ongoing. The incident was referred to the Independent Police Conduct Office, the police watchdog. Deputy Assistant Commissioner Lawrence Taylor said: “My thoughts and those of the Metropolitan Police Service are with the friends and family of the man who sadly lost his life following this incident. “I fully appreciate that the public will be very concerned. We naturally share that concern.”
