An officer with the Metropolitan Police has told a gross misconduct hearing he thought he smelled cannabis from the car of British sprinter Bianca Williams and her partner in July 2020 ©Getty Images

An officer with the Metropolitan Police in London has told a gross misconduct hearing that he thought he smelled cannabis from the car of British sprinter Bianca Williams and her partner Portuguese athlete Ricardo Dos Santos.

Williams and Dos Santos were stopped while travelling in a car in the English city in July 2020 with their three-month-old baby on board.

Police alleged that the car had driven away from officers after Dos Santos had allegedly been on the wrong side of the road, a claim denied by Williams.

The pair were handcuffed and searched for drugs and weapons, with no items found.

Williams filed a complaint over the incident, accusing the force of racial profiling.

The hearing was shown footage from a body camera of Police Constable Allan Casey, who denies the accusation of gross misconduct against him.

In the footage, Casey can be heard telling a colleague "there’s certainly a whiff of something", as reported by BBC News.

Casey then told the hearing: "I thought I could smell cannabis and I thought it was coming from the car."

An emotional Williams told the court hearing how she was handcuffed while her young son cried inside the car ©Getty Images
An emotional Williams told the court hearing how she was handcuffed while her young son cried inside the car ©Getty Images

The Independent Office for Police Conduct alleged that PC Casey, and fellow officers who are being investigated "lied" in saying there was a smell of cannabis from the car.

Williams, who this year won World Championship bronze as part of the British team in the women’s 4x100 metres relay in Budapest, and individual 200m bronze at the European Games in Krakow, has already given evidence at the hearing.

She cried while recalling being handcuffed as her son wept inside the vehicle.

During the stop and search, Williams and Dos Santos were handcuffed for 45 minutes, searched for weapons and drugs and separated from their son.

No items were found and neither were arrested.

While giving evidence Williams was asked about her attitude towards the police and replied: "It's hard to keep calm when you're constantly pulled over and given a rubbish excuse."

Bianca Williams, second from left, was part of the British quartet that won bronze medals in the women's 4x100 metres relay at this year's World Athletics Championships ©Getty Images
Bianca Williams, second from left, was part of the British quartet that won bronze medals in the women's 4x100 metres relay at this year's World Athletics Championships ©Getty Images

Dos Santos, a sprinter who finished seventh in the final of the 2018 European Championships in Berlin, told the hearing: "As a young black person I've been stopped on multiple occasions by police.

"These are very traumatic experiences and my experience is very different to those of others.

"You have no idea how it feels to be accused of things you haven't done as a young black person in London."

Acting Sgt Rachel Simpson and PCs Casey, Jonathan Clapham, Michael Bond and Sam Franks all face allegations that they breached police standards regarding equality and diversity during the stop and search.

Acting Sgt Simpson and PCs Clapham, Bond and Franks are accused of breaching standards over use of force and respect, while PCs Casey, Clapham, Bond and Franks face allegations over the accuracy of their account of the incident.

The hearing is expected to last around six weeks.