An off-duty officer who stopped and detained a wanted man has been named a winner at Avon and Somerset Police Federation’s inaugural Recognition Awards.

8 October 2024

An officer who was off-duty when he spotted and detained a wanted and dangerous man on a night out has been named a winner at Avon and Somerset Police Federation’s inaugural Recognition Awards

At 9.30pm on 10 March 2024, PC Matthew Lloyd was off duty walking through Bristol city centre with another off-duty officer, when he spotted a man he recognised as being wanted by the police for a spate of knife-point robberies.

He knew that the man was of no fixed abode and was likely to have his knife on him, so he contacted 999 straight away to try to get a unit to come down. In the meantime he continued to follow the man.

He saw the man tailgate a group of students into a secure entrance to student accommodation and suspected he could be about to commit another offence.

PC Lloyd said: “I thought: ‘Well, I can’t wait for a unit now because students are at risk.’ The man might panic and he’s probably got his knife on him.

“In the role I do, we deal quite a lot with knife offences. I know the damage that knives do and the effect it has on people. You’re told that when you’re off duty you shouldn’t put yourself in danger because you don’t have any PPE on you, but I couldn’t let other people be in danger.

“So the other officer – Sgt Paul Giddings - and I got inside the student accommodation and stepped into a communal courtyard. Straight away we saw the man hanging around, looking for a target. We walked over to him and, even though it was risky, I said: ‘Are you meant to be here?’, and he stopped for a second. Straight away I grabbed his arm and said: ‘You’re wanted’.”

PC Lloyd arrested the man for the previous robberies, then searched him and found and seized a lock knife. Uniformed officers arrived at the scene and took the man to the police station. PC Lloyd swiftly provided a statement of evidence that meant the suspect could be dealt with in custody.

The man was later charged and remanded with the following offences committed in February and March that year: theft from a store, three counts of possession of a bladed article, affray and robbery.

PC Lloyd said he was “flattered” to be nominated for a Federation Bravery Award, adding: “It’s the old cliché that you’re never off duty. I think it frustrates my family that I’m always looking around and going, ‘I know that person, can you just write down this registration for me, I need to do something about that’.”

He continued: “A lot of officers are never off duty, because it’s not just a job. Day in and day out, officers are doing things that are probably braver than what I did and not being recognised, but it will be nice to be able to celebrate this with my family.”

Avon and Somerset Police Federation’s Acting Chair, Iain Prideaux, said: “Police officers are never off duty – and doesn’t Matthew just prove that.

“His brave actions truly demonstrate his commitment to being a police officer and keeping the community safe, even when off duty. He acted courageously, responsibly and diligently to bring an offender to justice and prevent him from committing further offences. He also took another knife off the street. We are very proud of him.”

PC Lloyd will attend the Avon and Somerset Police Federation Recognition Awards on Thursday 3 October.

The lead sponsor for the Awards is the ASPF Group Insurance Scheme.

Also sponsoring are Serve and Protect Credit Union, George Burrows, Niche, Uniform Mortgages, Warren & Co, The Avon and Somerset Police and Crime Commissioner, Accord, The Avon and Somerset Police Benevolent Fund, Pointers Financial and Bluline.

The hashtag for the event is #ASPFAwards.