An amateur photographer who was arrested under anti-terrorism laws after taking a picture of a police officer has made a complaint to Kent Police.

Writing on his blog, Alex Turner says he was handcuffed and read his rights following the incident in Chatham High Street on July 8 before being detained in a police van for 20 minutes.

In a letter to the Professional Standards Department of Kent Police, Alex claims he was initially stopped by two men who claimed to work for Medway Council as he took pictures near Snappy Snaps.

He declined to provide details of his identity when asked because he did not feel he needed to as the men failed to identify themselves as police officers.

The men then called over a Police Community Support Officer, who was later joined by another officer and Alex was questioned further about why he was taking pictures in the High Street.

The arrest was made immediately after Alex took a photo of the officer as she spoke to a colleague on the phone in relation to him being stopped.

Alex writes: "I know a fair few people may say serves you right for a number of reasons. My response to that is it will serve you right when you wake up one day and realise you don’t live in a free country anymore."

Alex was "de-arrested" after police officers conducted a search and checked his identity through the driving licence he was carrying.

A spokesman for Medway Police said: "We can confirm that on Wednesday, July 8, at approximately 12.30pm a man was arrested on Military Road, Chatham.

"After a short period of time the man was de-arrested and no further action will be taken."

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