Police have been accused of using excessive force during an arrest of an injured man in Catford which left onlookers as young as 12 “traumatised.”

Neighbours described officers punching a man in his neck as they dragged him from an ambulance and into a police van shortly before 2pm on Fordmill Road on Wednesday afternoon.

But Scotland Yard has denied any wrongdoing, claiming the use of force was “necessary and proportionate.”

One witness, Sandra, told News Shopper she and her 12-year-old daughter were “shaken” when they saw eight police officers restrain the man after he had been treated by paramedics.

An hour before the arrest, Sandra and other witnesses had called an ambulance for the man after he crashed into two cars and stopped to leave his details.

“There was blood coming from his knees and he was complaining about his chest and back,” she described, adding he started to shiver and vomit.

While paramedics treated the driver, Sandra went back into her house and kept checking at the window.

“After about an hour or so, I heard shouting and mumbling. I ran to the window and police had taken [the driver] from the ambulance and they were putting him in the police van.

“I went outside and there were about eight police officers that had him. There was one who punched him in the neck.

“You wouldn’t treat an animal that way,” she said.

Horrified by what she saw, Sandra ran out of her house and shouted at the officers to stop as her daughter burst into tears.

“She was screaming and literally shaking. People have come to check on her since it happened,” she added.

Another neighbour, Ms Begum, described her horror as she watched officers restrain the man.

“They were pulling his hands back and I saw him being pushed down to the ground. I think it was a brutal use of force.

“Sandra and her daughter looked dazed. I think they were traumatised,” she said.

Mr Begum added she has made a complaint to the Met Police about the “brutal” use of force she witnessed.

A Met Police spokesman confirmed the driver had been arrested on suspicion of drug driving, but was released with no further action.

He said: “Police were called by LAS at 12:34hrs on Wednesday, 19 June to reports of a road traffic collision involving two cars in Fordmill Road, junction Tibbenham Place SE6.

A vehicle is reported to have collided with a parked car. Two males then attempted to make off from the scene.”

“Officers attended. One man was treated by LAS but was not taken to hospital.

“He was arrested on suspicion of drug driving and taken to an east London police station. He has since been released with no further action.

“The other man fled the scene; enquiries continue.

“Police received a complaint on 19 June from a member of the public regarding use of force in relation to this incident.

“Officers reviewed the officer’s body worn footage and assessed that the use of force was necessary and proportionate in the circumstances. This was relayed to the member of the public. No further complaints have been received.”