The incident occurred on July 19th in London when a 13-year-old boy was engaged in a water fight with his younger brother. A patrolling police officer received a report of possible firearm use and dispatched armed units to the scene. The police stopped the dark-skinned boy, took him off his bicycle, and pointed their weapons at him. Initially, he was detained but released when his mother intervened to defend him.

As reported by the BBC , the public was outraged by the police's heavy-handed approach toward a child.

The "Alliance for Police Accountability" (APA) organisation stated that the water pistols were toys – one was blue and white, and the other was purple and white. APA deemed the police's conduct and the situation itself as appalling. The officers showed contempt toward the boy's mother. Senior Police Superintendent James Conway apologised to the family but mentioned that an internal investigation revealed no wrongdoing. 

He added that police should treat water pistols as if they were real and loaded with bullets until proven otherwise. An investigation into complaints of racial discrimination is ongoing.