Putney Pusher Investigation Raises New Questions
The Putney pusher investigation has come under renewed scrutiny after the death of Nicholas Brandram, whose sisters said he was innocent of pushing a woman into the path of a bus on Putney Bridge in west London in May 2017.
Brandram was found dead on Tuesday evening, with his family saying he “took his own life after months of immense pressure” linked to the Metropolitan Police investigation. The Met said it recognised the strain that being subject to a police investigation could cause and confirmed that a mandatory referral had been made to the police watchdog.
Brandram’s sisters, Alexia Hicks and Sophie Voelcker, spoke to BBC Radio 4’s Today programme about their brother’s case. They said his mental health had deteriorated in recent months while he remained under police scrutiny and that “every day was becoming difficult” for him.
Nicholas Brandram’s Family Disputes Putney Pusher Case
The sisters said they believed there were several reasons why Brandram could not have been the jogger involved in the Putney pusher incident. They argued that his physical appearance did not match the description given by the woman who was pushed, including differences in eye colour.
According to the family, Brandram had a withered leg resulting from an old army injury and a prominent military tattoo on his forearm. The victim had reportedly described the attacker as having brown eyes, while Brandram had blue eyes.
His sisters also said Brandram lived in Notting Hill and had no connection with Putney. They claimed they had evidence indicating that he was at his office on Bond Street when the attack occurred, although the investigation remained ongoing.
The family also questioned why Brandram had not received the results of a DNA sample he voluntarily provided to police. His sisters said he gave the sample in an effort to help speed up the investigation and had repeatedly asked the Metropolitan Police to provide the results.
Sisters Criticise Metropolitan Police Investigation
Hicks described Brandram’s arrest in June as “hostile”, saying he woke up to a large number of police officers wearing armed vests and a media film crew outside his home.
“My brother woke up to a large handful of police officers wearing armed vests and with a film crew on the doorstep from the media,” Hicks told the BBC.
She said the arrest came unexpectedly and was based on what she believed must have been “either malicious or mistaken” allegations.
Brandram’s sisters described him as a “very, very, very loved brother and uncle, father, son” and said he was a “real family man” who “didn’t deserve any of this happening to him”.
They also said the Putney pusher investigation had a severe effect on him after his name was leaked on social media. According to the sisters, the online reaction became increasingly hostile, with Brandram reading material about the case while the investigation continued.
Met Investigation Remains Ongoing
The sisters accused the Metropolitan Police of being “negligent” and “reckless”, arguing that the force had failed in its duty of care towards their brother and family. They also questioned whether the person responsible for the 2017 incident remained at large.
“The Met, they were negligent, they were reckless and they have, you know, failed our brother,” the sisters said.
They added that the Metropolitan Police appeared to have an “urgency” to arrest Brandram and inform the press, while he could not understand why there was not the same urgency to clear his name.
The Putney pusher case dates back to May 2017, when a woman was pushed into the path of a bus while walking across Putney Bridge. CCTV footage of the incident attracted widespread attention after showing a jogger apparently pushing her into the road before continuing along the bridge.
The Metropolitan Police said the investigation into the 2017 incident remained ongoing. The force said it had no further comment regarding the claims made by Brandram’s sisters.
The referral to the police watchdog means the circumstances surrounding the investigation will be subject to the appropriate oversight process. Meanwhile, Brandram’s family continues to dispute his involvement in the Putney pusher case and maintains that he was wrongly suspected.