Police stop and search used on children under five in Shropshire
West Mercia Police have used stop and search powers on more than 1,300 children over the past two years – including three under the age of five.
All three of the children aged under five were searched in relation to drugs crimes.
The figures, released under the Freedom of Information Act, reveal that a total of eight children beneath the age of criminal responsibility of 10 have been searched by officers since 2010.
The force has stopped and searched a total of 3,802 children under the age of 16 over the past five years, with 131 aged 12 or younger.
Freedom of Information requests to police forces across the UK reveal children who are well under the criminal age of responsibility were subjected to the powers, which have been blamed for inflaming tensions between the police and the public.
Nationally, almost 300 young children have been stopped and searched by police in the last five years at a time when the Government has attempted to crack down on the tactic.
In total, 288 children aged under five have been subjected to searches on suspicion of terrorism, drugs and "anticipated violence".
However, the police said in almost all cases, the tactic was used to search small children who had been used by adults to conceal drugs, weapons and stolen goods.
The news raises questions over the use of very young children in dangerous criminal enterprises by parents and other organised gangs.
The law states that police are allowed to use the stop and search power when they have a "reasonable suspicion" that the subject is carrying drugs or weapons, or intending to commit a crime.
A former police officer who worked in border control said the powers were only used against toddlers in exceptional circumstances.
He recalled one occasion when his team had firm intelligence that a couple with a baby was entering the UK carrying drugs.
However, nothing was found on the couple when they were searched – and the officers decided not to use the power to frisk the baby as they were concerned about the potential fallout.
"Can you imagine the headlines if we had searched the baby's nappy and found nothing?" he said.
"No-one was prepared to risk their careers for that, so the couple was waved through."
Superintendent Mark Travis, of West Mercia Police, said the force was committed to protecting its communities, and would continue to use appropriate and lawful methods in order to achieve that.
"Stop and search is used to detect certain types of crime to help make our communities safer," she said.
"Where sufficient grounds exist the use of stop and search can prevent the need to arrest a person, this is particularly important when dealing with young people."
