Putney Bridge jogger – First pictures of wealthy American banker ‘arrested’ over ‘Putney Pusher’ video but he says he was in US at the time
Lawyers representing Eric Bellquist released a statement saying he had been arrested but was completely innocent as he was out of the country
THE man arrested over the 'Putney Pusher' video was today named as a wealthy American banker - but he says he is innocent.
Cops arrested Eric Bellquist yesterday after shocking footage showed a jogger pushing a woman into a bus on Putney Bridge, and later released him under investigation.
This morning Mr Bellquist's lawyer issued a denial of the allegations against him, claiming he was out of the country at the time.
The statement reads: "This statement is issued in relation to our client Mr Eric Bellquist, who was arrested yesterday in relation to an assault that took place between a male jogger and a female pedestrian on the 5th May 2017 on Putney Bridge, London.
"Our client has been wrongly implicated in this matter; he categorically denies being the individual concerned and has irrefutable proof that he was in the United States at the time of the incident.
"Consequently we expect a swift resolution to this wholly untrue allegation."
The 41-year-old, who is a partner Mayfair based private equity firm Hutton Collins, was quizzed by detectives on suspicion of GBH yesterday after shocking CCTV of the incident was released in a public appeal earlier this week.
Mr Bellquist studied at the University of Colorado Boulder and worked for Lehman Brothers before joining Hutton Collins Partners, which owns restaurant chains including Wagamana and Byron.
Shocking footage of the incident shows a man pushing a 33-year-old woman into a busy road as he runs across Putney Bridge.
An oncoming bus managed to swerve and somehow avoid hitting her as she lay sprawled on the ground.
But investigating officer Sergeant Mat Knowles said she was "put in extreme danger" when she was knocked into the road.
He added: "It was only due to the superb quick reactions of the bus driver that she was not hit by the vehicle."
The bus stopped and passengers tended to the woman following the incident at about 7.40am on May 5.
Cops said the jogger ran the other way across the bridge around 15 minutes later and the victim attempted to speak to him, but "he did not acknowledge her".
Co-workers said the driver's last-minute swerve "without a shadow of a doubt" saved the 33-year-old's life as she was pushed to the ground just inches from the bus.
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