'Putney Pusher' Suspect Told Family Police Probe Was 'Murdering Him' Before His Death

Nicholas Brandram told his family the police investigation into whether he was the so-called 'Putney Pusher' was 'murdering him' just days before he was found dead at his west London home.

The 44-year-old banker had been arrested in June over the notorious 2017 attack on Putney Bridge but was never charged. His sisters say his mental health deteriorated sharply as the investigation dragged on and online abuse intensified, despite his family insisting the available evidence supported their belief that police had the wrong man.

Brandram was found unresponsive at his home in Chiswick on 15 September. Police have described his death as unexpected but not suspicious, while his family says he took his own life after months of pressure linked to the investigation.

Family Says Brandram Had 'No Fight Left'

Brandram's sisters, Alexia Hicks and Sophie Voelcker, said he repeatedly told them he could no longer cope with the scrutiny surrounding the case.

Hicks said her brother told the family just days before his death that the investigation was 'murdering him', while relatives said he felt increasingly overwhelmed by both the police inquiry and online speculation.

Voelcker said Brandram had 'no fight left' and could no longer see a way through the situation. His family says lawyers had warned police about his deteriorating mental health and that he spent six days receiving psychiatric treatment shortly before his death.

The family says officers were repeatedly urged to complete the outstanding investigation and DNA analysis so the uncertainty surrounding him could be resolved.

Family Insists Police Had Wrong Man

Brandram was arrested on 15 June on suspicion of attempted grievous bodily harm, nine years after CCTV captured a jogger apparently shoving a woman into the path of an oncoming bus on Putney Bridge.

The bus driver swerved and narrowly avoided striking the woman, who suffered minor injuries. Footage of the attack became one of Britain's most widely shared unsolved crime clips after police released it during their search for the jogger.

Brandram's family insists he was not the man shown in the footage.

His sisters say there was no forensic evidence linking him to the incident and no evidence placing him on Putney Bridge at the time. They also pointed to physical differences between Brandram and the jogger, including a prominent military tattoo and what they described as a withered calf.

The family says Brandram voluntarily provided DNA and offered to take part in an identification parade as he sought to prove he was not responsible.

They also said he had sent an email from his workplace on the morning of the attack, which they believe supported his account of where he was at the time.

Brandram was released without charge while the renewed investigation remained open.

Met Refers Case to Police Watchdog

Following Brandram's death, the Metropolitan Police made a mandatory referral to the Independent Office for Police Conduct over officers' previous contact with him.

The IOPC is assessing the referral before deciding whether any further action is required.

The Met has acknowledged the strain that being subjected to a police investigation can place on individuals and their families but said officers were still pursuing outstanding lines of inquiry and forensic work.

Brandram's family has accused the force of being quick to place him under suspicion but slow to remove that suspicion, saying their priority is now to clear his name.

They say he died believing members of the public thought he was responsible for an attack he had always denied committing.

The original Putney Bridge investigation was closed in 2018 after police said reasonable lines of inquiry had been exhausted, before the case was revived years later.