If your report on the actions of two police officers towards law abiding citizens who had been mugged in Croydon is correct, the two officers should be sacked forthwith (The laughing policemen? Croydon Guardian, May 17).

And the training of officers in the basic skills of customer contact and good manners would need to be reviewed.

The police are supposed to protect and serve the community, even if these alleged actions by a few officers are not typical, they would bring the whole force into disrepute.

If the allegations are proved the borough commander should make a full and personal apology to Croydon for the actions of his officers.

I would hope his response to this is not just a whitewash.

I would also like him to assure us all that the police who are there to protect us are tasked with improving their detection rate and also their response rate to calls for assistance.

Malcolm Felberg
A concerned resident