Muslim woman wrongly arrested at Lloyds Bank
By Fareena Alam
Montreal Muslim News
June 1, 2003
 http://www.montrealmuslimnews.net/womanarrested.htm

London UK - June 1, 2003 (MMN) - Lloyds Bank has come under fire after staff at its Highbury branch triggered the dramatic arrest of a British Muslim customer. Hasanah Islam 22, the eldest daughter of legendary musician Cat Stevens, now known as Yusuf Islam, tried to withdraw £700 from her personal bank account at Lloyds Bank in Highbury. She was suspected of fraud when the teller mistook a crease in her passport as evidence of "forging and tampering".

“I was kept waiting for fifteen minutes. The teller said the bank was waiting for confirmation of my transaction. Not once did they ask me if I could explain the crease,” said Mrs. Islam, in an exclusive interview with the Guardian. Prior to the withdrawal, the same teller had accepted a £3000 deposit to Mrs. Islam’s credit card.

The police was called in and within minutes, Ms Islam and her husband who had accompanied her, were arrested. They were held for more than an hour in jail while the police conducted “rudimentary checks that could have been made by the Bank staff themselves”. The allegations eventually proved unfounded.

The same passport had been used to open the bank account less than a year ago, and had been used to travel in and out of the United States three weeks before the incident.

“I encountered no problems when I opened the bank account or the four times I have been on international trips since this passport was issued. It has always looked like this,” said Mrs. Islam.

The Islam family has banked with Lloyds' Highbury branch for over two decades. On Wednesday, Bank manager Warren Wright responded to their letter of complaint with no apology, but an explanation of why the police had been called. He admitted that the bank’s routine procedure of demanding a second form of identification if so needed was neglected by the teller. Also according to Mr. Wright’s letter, the teller should have given Mrs. Islam a full explanation for the delay in processing her transaction but added “giving her such information may have conflicted with the need to keep the person within the bank”.

“I just want an apology and acceptance from Mr. Wright and his staff that what they did was beyond common rationality, said Mr. Islam. "I am not only concerned for my daughter, what about the thousands of such incidents which must be happening all over the country, innocent citizens who have been traumatised due to sudden whims and suspicions of people with such attitudes?"

Lloyds was also unable to confirm at the time of this report if the teller had attempted to establish positive identification by checking Mrs. Islam’s signature on the withdrawal form with the signature on the account.

A spokesperson for the bank defended the action saying the teller had followed routine procedure by consulting with two other colleagues, including the senior manager: “Our staff are instructed to call the police at the earliest opportunity because of the increase in financial crime. What the police do once they arrive is their responsibility, not ours. If they arrested her, clearly they had sufficient cause for concern.”

Mrs. Islam said one of the police officers had shrugged and said, "Well, I'm no expert" before leading her away.

“Two of the institutions you once thought you could rely on, the police and the banks, you can no longer feel secure with,” said Mrs. Islam, who is now seeking medical advice for what could be Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder.

The incident has significantly heightened concerns over the erosion of civil liberties for Muslims in Britain.

“I am totally outraged by the level of hysteria spreading through the major institutions of this country,” said Mr. Islam. “From the Government down to the common teller, it seems this country has gone back to the age of witch-hunts and is suffering a massive epidemic of prejudice.

“Hasanah is probably one of the most honest and straightforward people you’re likely to meet, but she happens to wear a head scarf. Is that the problem?”

“It’s scary,” says Mrs. Islam, who is the vice-President of the Islam family’s group of corporate companies and registered charities.

“My husband and I were born and raised in Britain but it doesn't feel like home anymore.”

 fareena_alam@yahoo.com

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