A shopper says he was grabbed and harassed by store security guards at Bluewater after they suspected him of shoplifting and he claims he was treated that way because he is black.

Video footage of the altercation at the shopping centre near Dartfordhas been viewed and shared thousands of times.

Man accused of stealing from House of Fraser at Bluewater says he was grabbed from behind because he is black

The incident on Sunday afternoon saw Cephas Williams, founder of equal rights group Black British Network, take to Instagram and post the video showing the moment he is accosted.

Mr Williams paid for suitcases in the House of Fraser store before he says he was followed and "grabbed from behind" and said he thought he was being jumped by someone trying to hurt him.

Several security guards then arrive and surround Mr Williams, who says he's "fed up" of black people being treated in a similar way.

Mr Williams said: "Security guards ran after me, grabbed me up, harassed me, grabbed my purchases and accused me of stealing them.

"This is a teachable moment for all companies in the UK, this is what black people go through.

"Everyone was active last year after the public called out CEOs and systemic racism in all companies worldwide, where are all the promises for change now?

"Someone said it was a misunderstanding, it’s not a misunderstanding, it’s racism. Period.

"I don’t need companies to promise me their staff aren’t racist and racism doesn’t exist, I need you to promise me you won’t tolerate it and you will change. This has to end now.

"I’m no longer begging to be treated fairly. Security ran up and grabbed me from behind, I thought someone was trying to jump me.

"No black person should have to go through what I went through."

The heated exchange captured on video shows Mr Williams standing by his purchases with a security guard firmly grabbing his wrist.

He says he was grabbed so firmly from behind that it forced his facemask off which was questioned by another guard from the centre.

When a guard asks if he has paid and demands to see a receipt before trying to pull the items back into the store, Mr Williams replies: "Of course I have paid, ask your staff."

Mr Williams said he was "disgruntled and was allowed to be" after the security "ran after me and grabbed me".

In reply to a guard saying people make mistakes, Mr Williams said: "No, people are racist and are biased.

"Don't talk to me about mistakes. If I was an old white man or an old white lady he would never have run up to me like that.

"They didn't make a mistake they were racist."

A spokesman for Landsec, which owns Bluewater, said: “We were saddened to see the video of Cephas Williams’ experience at House of Fraser in Bluewater which has been circulating online. We are sorry that Mr Williams was placed in such an unpleasant and stressful situation.

“We want everyone to feel welcome, safe and respected when they visit our centres. Despite our efforts training our staff and working with our brand partners, we clearly have more to do.

“Since the video surfaced, we have reached out to Mr Williams to discuss his experience further. He has also been in direct contact with our CEO - the two of them will be meeting soon to reflect on the lessons we can learn from this.

“In the meantime, we have reviewed our role in this incident and discussions are underway across the business as to how we can do better, including the training we provide our staff and more widely share with our brand partners.

"We recognise that we still have work to do and are committed to doing everything we can to ensure equality and diversity play a central role in our business..."

“We would like the thank those that did take the time to provide us with constructive feedback.

"We recognise that we still have work to do and are committed to doing everything we can to ensure equality and diversity play a central role in our business.

"We stand against any form of discrimination and continue to work hard to provide positive experiences for our guests.”

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