Retired company director Colin Farmer, 61, was shot as he walked to meet friends in Chorley, Lancashire The unnamed officer then handcuffed Mr Farmer - a two-time stroke victim - as he fell to the ground after being hit with the stun-gun The frightened grandfather, who is blind and partially paralysed down one side of his body, feared he was being attacked by a mugger Mr Farmer has called for the officer responsible to be 'sacked, charged and locked-up' following the incident Lancashire Constabulary has said it 'deeply regrets' the blunder, and has launched an urgent investigation
By Nazia Parveen and James Tozer
PUBLISHED: 05:04 EST, 17 October 2012 | UPDATED: 19:32 EST, 17 October 2012
Police were accused last night of behaving like thugs with weapons after firing a 50,000-volt Taser into the back of a blind man.
An officer mistook stroke victim Colin Farmers white stick for a samurai sword and discharged the stun gun leaving the retired architect writhing in agony on the ground.
No disciplinary action is being taken against the officer. The extraordinary blunder is the latest illustration of the soaring number of controversial incidents with the weapons, which can be fatal.
'Terrified': Blind pensioner Colin Farmer, 61, was set upon in Chorley, Lancashire after a police officer mistook his cane for a samurai sword
Mr Farmer, 61, said yesterday he thought he was being killed by the stun gun before being handcuffed as he lay face down on the ground.
He added that the officer who discharged the device should be sacked, charged and locked up.
Former home secretary David Blunkett, who is himself blind, said last night: I am as stunned as Colin Farmer must have been by the Taser itself. After the Paralympics I genuinely hoped wed made some progress.