Police cleared after masked officers detained 13-year-old girl

Three plainclothes police officers wearing balaclavas were not found to have acted improperly when they entered a home in Suðurnes and detained a 13-year-old girl, mbl.is reported. A police oversight committee nevertheless said the incident offered lessons and urged police in Suðurnes to give particular consideration to the interests of children and young people during operations.

The girl’s mother contacted the committee after the incident. The girl was home alone when the officers knocked forcefully on a window. When she opened the door and saw them, she became frightened. One officer followed her inside, took hold of her hands and held them behind her back. She was restrained for about 15 minutes.

The girl thought the men were burglars who intended to abduct her and cried throughout the operation. She realised they were police only after a female officer entered the house and repeatedly identified them as officers. The incident had a profound effect on her.

The operation was part of an investigation into drug imports. The suspect was renting another apartment in the same house. Police said they had not known the apartment was rented, and that the girl’s initial response of running away made it difficult to handle the operation differently. Police also denied that the men had failed to identify themselves with police identification.

The committee agreed that the sequence of events was particularly unfortunate, but concluded that the officers’ conduct was not reprehensible.