Stunned gardener arrested by armed police for carrying allotment tools

A man cautioned for carrying a bladed trowel and small scythe said he was given no choice but to accept the reprimand - as police were unable to source him a solicitor. Police Armed Response officers were despatched to challenge Samuel Rowe, 35, as he walked home from his allotment in Chorlton, Manchester, carrying the digging tool, a peeling knife and a sickle.

The theatre manager said he was held for 12 hours, before being told he had to accept the caution without representation or face longer in custody. Greater Manchester Police (GMP) said Mr Rowe had admitted possessing a "dagger" and was given a conditional caution, which entailed advice about the law on the carrying of bladed weapons in public.

The keen gardener said he was terrified when the armed officers, who did not draw their weapons, arrived outside his home on 3 July.

He said the officers were shouting at him to "drop the knife". Mr Rowe explained: "I said I didn't have a knife and they told me to drop the knife again.

"So I dropped my Japanese hand gardening sickle and a handful of privet that I just cut off the hedge. They turned me around, pushed me up against my house, handcuffed me, then put me in the back of a van."

Mr Rowe said he was questioned by police while in custody and it "felt like they'd gone out that day expecting to catch some kind of lone wolf attacker".

"I was doing nothing wrong," he said. "They treated me like I had been doing harm to people."

Mr Rowe recalled: "It was a good seven hours before an officer was assigned my case. They came back and said 'we've tried contacting this solicitor three times and they've not answered the phone'.

"They said 'we can ring them again, start the process again with another solicitor, or you do the interview without a solicitor'.

"By this point I was pretty traumatised, I'd spent hours in a cell with the lights going dim, going bright again over periods of time. I didn't know exactly what time it was.

"I'd tried getting to phone my partner to let her know where I was, with five different people, each time it was like the first time I'd asked.

"Then this officer eventually took me out, it must have been 7.30 or 8pm at this point, to let my partner know, and all they did was ring her up and tell her where I was.

"They said 'to be honest, it's a courtesy call, he'll ring you when he gets out'."

Mr Rowe was reportedly probed further on whether he was "planning on doing something" with his tools and was asked to explain what an allotment was.

He added: "It didn't fill me with any kind of confidence I was going to be treated fairly, because I'd been arrested doing my gardening with what they were telling me was an offensive weapon."

Mr Rowe was carrying the £32 Niwaki Hori Hori weeding trowel in its sheath, a small Japanese Ice Bear gardener's sickle and a peeling knife, along with a trug of vegetables.

He said the peeling knife was his late grandmother's, the sickle had been purchased a decade ago and the trowel, which has a short blade and wooden handle, was a present. He now wants to see the caution removed.

He added: "I've done absolutely nothing wrong in the past, because I didn't want to have any contact with the police.

"I got a phone call [afterwards] from Greater Manchester's mental health team who were then asking for questions about my lifestyle, religion, and that kind of thing.

"It's not a large dagger - it's a tool for digging with, and I kept telling them that.

"It's not a peeling knife either, because why would I have a potato peeler in my pocket? It doesn't make sense."

He added that he had not been aware of any warnings about carrying the tools in public. However, since his arrest a warning has appeared on the trowel manufacturer's website.

It said customers needed "to familiarise themselves with offensive weapons law before carrying the tool in public".

"We strongly advise that you keep this tool concealed, sheathed, and out of sight in public places - preferably in a gardening bag or toolbox rather than on your belt," it added.

Mr Rowe said he finally accepted a conditional caution - but was now worried it could affect his job at a theatre, where he sometimes had to work with vulnerable young people.

Cautions are given to people on the basis that they admit an offence, but do not count as a criminal conviction.

Some simple cautions are spent as soon as they are accepted, but others could be flagged up on standard and enhanced Disclosure Barring Service checks.

Mr Rowe now says he did not believe he had "committed a crime" and called for his caution to be rescinded.

He added that he understood the police had a job to do but was now scared to continue with what had been a lifelong hobby.

He's been growing fruit and veg - including rhubarb, broad beans, artichokes, and tomatoes, at his allotment since 2022. He was given a patch after a two-year period on his local council's waiting list.

A Greater Manchester Police spokesperson said: "At around 12.20pm on 3 July, we acted on a call from a member of the public that a man was walking in public wearing khaki clothing and in possession of a knife.

"Nearby officers were flagged down by the caller, who directed them towards a male.

"He was subsequently stopped and a small sickle, a large dagger which was in a sheath on a belt, and a peeling knife, were seized.

"He was arrested on suspicion of possession of an offensive weapon and taken into custody.

"He admitted the offence and was given a conditional caution, which entailed advice and guidance around the legislation of knives and bladed weapons in a public place."

The gardener added he should not have been arrested by armed officers, did not deserve it, that his caution should be removed and his gardening tools ought to be returned. He's now seeking legal representation to try to challenge his arrest.