THE MAN at the centre of a violent arrest video has vowed to continue take his fight against Cleveland Police to the European Court despite an investigation finding the force had no case to answer.

An investigation into allegations of police brutality has exonerated three officers accused of assaulting Thornaby man Darran Dunford and his former partner Leigh Leach.

But Mr Dunford said he was unhappy that the inquiry relied on police investigation police. He plans to take the case to the European Court.

Despite the Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC) upholding complaints against the officers involved, it was referred back to Cleveland Police for a “local investigation” that saw the PCs cleared of any wrongdoing at a hearing held last week.

Mr Dunford claimed he was given less than 24-hours notification of the hearing and was left without legal representation to face the officers and their representatives.

He said: “It felt like a kangaroo court.

“I’m shocked by the whole process - Teresa May recently told the Police Federation that the system was broken and I agree. There’s no justice here, if it had been a member of the public doing this, their feet wouldn’t touch the ground.”

The investigations were sparked after CCTV footage of the 2013 arrests was posted online.

Mr Dunford was arrested for swearing at police officers responding to reports of a man being drunk and disorderly on Stockton High Street.

The incident escalated when officers tried to get him into their police car – Mr Dunford says there was an accidental “clash of heads” while Cleveland Police maintain he headbutted two officers and was in possession of cannabis - charges he later pleaded guilty to.

CCTV footage shows several officers pinning Mr Dunford to the ground where he is repeatedly punched and kneed and has his face pressed to the ground.

In a witness statement obtained by the Northern Echo, PC Michael Wilson admitted to punching Mr Dunford in the face "to distract him from his attempts to bite and resist" during the incident.

The video also shows Ms Leach being arrested. Charges of being drunk and disorderly were thrown out of court when police statements were deemed contradictory to the CCTV evidence.

Cleveland Police’s immediate investigations found there was no case to answer but a subsequent appeal saw the matter referred to the IPCC which recommended the force hold gross misconduct hearings for PCs Wilson, Darren Keeley and Gareth Humphrey.

The two-day hearing, attended by the police, the IPCC and an independent individual, exonerated the officers.

Cleveland Police’s Deputy Chief Constable Iain Spittal said the “fair” and “balanced” hearing determined force used by officers was necessary and proportionate.

He added: “The footage of Mr Dunford’s arrest can, when viewed in isolation and out of context, appear disturbing in terms of the force the officers needed to use.

“It is important to understand that the footage is a snapshot which does not tell the whole story.”

A spokesman for the IPCC said it had believed the force had a case to answer but must respect the decision made following the hearing.