Mother-of-Two arrested and detained for 7 Hours after Confiscating Her Own Children’s iPads to help them focus on homework

A 50-year-old history teacher was arrested and held in a police cell for over seven hours after confiscating her daughters iPads in an attempt to help them focus on their schoolwork. Vanessa Brown, from Cobham, Surrey, UK, described the experience as unspeakably devastating and traumatic after she was taken into custody at Staines Police Station. She was arrested following a report from a man in his 40s, alleging theft of the devices. Despite the iPads belonging to her own children, Brown was searched, fingerprinted, and had custody photos taken. Police even visited her childrens school and removed one of her daughters from class as part of their inquiry.  Brown was arrested at her mothers home and released only after a 12-hour ordeal, during which she feared she would be banned from seeing her children on Mothers Day due to imposed bail conditions.  Surrey Police later acknowledged the mistake, confirming that the iPads were not stolen and that Brown had every right to confiscate items from her children.  I find it quite traumatic even talking about this now, Brown told LBC. They sent officers to my childrens school and to arrest me, while other people are reporting assaults and violent crimes without any response for days. Its deeply concerning.  Brown expressed frustration over the speed and forcefulness of the response to a clearly domestic matter, calling the handling of the case thoroughly unprofessional.My mother, who is in her 80s, was treated like a criminal. It was a complete overreaction, and no one stopped to question the logic of what they were doing.  Conservative MP and former Thames Valley Police and Crime Commissioner, Anthony Stansfeld, criticised the forces handling of the incident.It was quite unnecessary to place a reputable 50-year-old teacher in a cell for seven hours, he said. This shouldve been shut down swiftly by a senior officer. The chief constable should personally apologise.  A spokesperson for Surrey Police said: A man in his 40s reported a potential theft of two iPads. A tracking device located them at a Cobham address. A woman was arrested, and the devices were found. She was released on conditional bail while enquiries continued. Those conditions included not speaking to her daughters, who were connected to the investigation. After further investigation, it was confirmed that the iPads belonged to the womans children, and she had the right to confiscate them.  The incident comes on the heels of another controversial arrest in Hertfordshire, where two parents were detained for 11 hours after complaints about their daughters primary school were posted in a WhatsApp group.  Maxie Allen, a Times Radio producer, and his partner, Rosalind Levine, were arrested on suspicion of harassment and malicious communication after a disagreement with Cowley Hill Primary School. CCTV footage showed six uniformed officers arriving at their home and arresting them in front of their young daughter.  Allen described the event as dystopian and a massive overreach. After a five-week investigation, Hertfordshire Constabulary concluded there was no case to answer. The post Mother-of-Two arrested and detained for 7 Hours after Confiscating Her Own Childrens iPads to help them focus on homework appeared first on Linda Ikeji Blog.