A chief constable has claimed only ‘some’ communities were upset after a shocking video of a police officer kicking a man in the head at Manchester Airport emerged online.
The extraordinary footage showed a policeman violently kick and stamp on the head of a man who was face down with his hands behind his back on the floor after being tasered.
In the clip, a woman believed to be a family member, could be seen watching on in horror as the officer struck a second man with the pair being detained shortly thereafter.
The Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) watchdog said it had notified the Greater Manchester Police officer that the officer is facing a criminal probe for assault.
Greater Manchester Police Chief Constable, Stephen Watson QPM has since shared a statement, laying blame on investigation constraints as to why bodycam footage of the incident on Tuesday has not been released.
Shared on Friday evening, his statement read: ‘It is a source of profound regret that this week’s incident at Manchester Airport has caused shock and upset in some of our communities.
Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) regional director Catherine Bates said today: ‘We can confirm we are conducting a criminal investigation into the use of force during events which took place on July 23 at Manchester Airport. We are arranging to interview a police constable under criminal caution as soon as possible.
‘I have today met one of the men who was involved and his family members to outline our investigation and we will continue to update them and Greater Manchester Police as our enquiries progress. We will be speaking to the man involved in the second incident as soon as we can.
‘The family has asked me to reiterate their call for peace and wish to stress that they do not condone any acts of violence as a result of this incident.
‘We are meeting with a number of community leaders in Rochdale this afternoon to listen to their concerns and explain our role.
‘Our investigation continues to gather relevant evidence and will be following a number of lines of enquiry. We will provide further updates when we are in a position to do so.’
‘Throughout this week, senior officers have been meeting with community representatives to ensure their voices are heard and this will continue – we are at one with the best instincts of those engaged in appealing for calm.
He added: ‘Whilst we are constrained in publicly releasing further information or footage about the incident due to the conduct and criminal investigations, we are committed to providing the fullest practical assistance to the Independent Office for Police Conduct.’
On Wednesday further footage emerged from different angles showing the chaotic scenes, as well as what appears to be the separate arrests of a group of other men in the same location.
Greater Manchester Police said the footage was filmed after multiple officers were assaulted leaving one with a broken nose as they responded to reports of an assault in Terminal 2 on Tuesday afternoon.
The incident sparked two nights of demonstrations in Manchester and Rochdale, which saw roads, tram lines blocked.
The IOPC said the serving of notices does not necessarily mean criminal charges will follow.
At the end of its investigation, the IOPC will decide whether to refer the matter to the Crown Prosecution Service for a charging decision and decide whether the officer should face disciplinary proceedings.
IOPC regional director Catherine Bates said today: ‘We can confirm we are conducting a criminal investigation into the use of force during events which took place on July 23 at Manchester Airport. We are arranging to interview a police constable under criminal caution as soon as possible.
‘I have today met one of the men who was involved and his family members to outline our investigation and we will continue to update them and Greater Manchester Police as our enquiries progress.
‘We will be speaking to the man involved in the second incident as soon as we can.’
She added that the family had asked her to ‘reiterate their call for peace and wish to stress that they do not condone any acts of violence as a result of this incident’.
Ms Bates said the IOPC would be meeting with community leaders in Rochdale this afternoon to ‘listen to their concerns and explain our role’.
She continued: ‘Our investigation continues to gather relevant evidence and will be following a number of lines of enquiry. We will provide further updates when we are in a position to do so.’
It comes as it emerged the chaos is now alleged to have followed a mid-air row involving the man’s mother.
Family sources claimed Fahir and Amaad Khan were defending their mother when they were taken into custody by police on Tuesday after she arrived from Pakistan.
The mother was allegedly involved in a row during the flight with a male passenger – with insiders alleging that while she was picking up her luggage in Terminal 2, the same man pushed her with his trolley and made racist comments towards her.
It is claimed that the mother later pointed him out to her sons, and one then confronted the man – before a physical altercation that saw the police called.
Speaking to the Daily Telegraph, sources said the family claim they walked away and were confronted by armed police near the ticket machines, during which one officer allegedly struck the mother in the face.
This claim has not been independently verified, with Greater Manchester Police (GMP) not releasing any bodycam footage of this part of the encounter so far and no video shot by passersby released on social media. GMP claims after the initial encounter its officers were assaulted and ‘punched to the ground’ with three left needing hospital treatment including one female officer who had a broken nose.
No footage of this part of the incident has been released online either, with the first videos showing Fahir lying on the ground with his hands behind his back and Amaad sat on a chair with his hands above his head.
Multiple angles of the incident after this point have since been released online, with 19-year-old Fahir seen being kicked in the face and stamped on the head by a police officer, before he and his brother are hauled away by police.
Today, the family lawyer described the incident as an ‘attempted joint enterprise assassination’ by the police following another night of demonstrations.
Hundreds of protesters blocked traffic and held up Black Lives Matter placards last night after footage of a Greater Manchester Police firearms officer kicking a teenager in the head ‘like a football’ sparked allegations of gratuitous violence.
Demonstrators who gathered outside Mayor Andy Burnham ‘s office claimed the shocking videos showed the force was racist and called for it to be ‘defunded’.
The rally came as the officer filmed kicking a 19-year-old in the head then stamping on him in a violent arrest on Tuesday was suspended after further clips emerged.
Mr Burnham said at a press conference this afternoon: ‘People spoke of the family’s appeal for calm. It was echoed in the room and I am today amplifying that message as loudly and clearly as I can so that everyone hears it.
‘Lots of people this week have had their say on events here and it’s important now that those same people hear what people in Greater Manchester want to happen next.
‘What they want is a process that is able to proceed on the basis, as I said before, of being fair to everyone, rigorous, swift and has input from Greater Manchester communities.
‘That has got to be the priority now so that the full facts can be established and we can get to the full truth of what happened, that’s in everyone’s interest.
‘What people here don’t want – and I heard this very clearly in the room this morning – is politicians without possession of the facts exploiting the situation for their own political agenda with zero regard for the effect on the ground in communities in Greater Manchester.’
Earlier, the teenager’s controversial solicitor Akhmed Yakoob described the incident as an ‘attempted assassination, the joint enterprise assassination of the young boys by the police officers’.
Speaking to LBC radio this morning, Mr Yakoob added: ‘That is concerning because if police officers who are meant to protect us are going around trying to kill people. I mean, how are the public going to feel safe?’
Questioned by presenter Nick Ferrari over his use of the word ‘assassination’, Mr Yakoob said: ‘Kill, yeah. They were threatened to kill, one of the boys were threatened to get killed by a police officer.’
Mr Yakoob also posted a video on Instagram, saying that he would be meeting the IOPC today, adding that there would be ‘light at the end of the tunnel’ and he was ‘confident that justice will prevail’.
understands that Greater Manchester Police is not commenting on any specific claims at this stage due to the ongoing IOPC investigation.
Mr Yakoob – who is nicknamed the TikTok lawyer and earlier this year unsuccessfully stood to be the mayor of the West Midlands on a pro-Gaza platform – previously claimed that his client was ‘fighting for his life’ in hospital.
The lawyer said a CT scan had revealed that Fahir Muhammed Amas had a ‘cyst on the brain’. However, he admitted he did not know whether it was linked to his violent arrest.
And today, newly-elected Rochdale Labour MP Paul Waugh confirmed that while the family members had been taken to hospital, they were both now at home.
Up to 400 protesters staged a sit-in in the centre of Manchester last night, causing severe disruption to the city’s tram network.
Many held BLM banners with one speaker saying the incident was ‘another reason’ why the group wanted to defund Greater Manchester Police.
Also today, Mr Yakoob called for officer who kicked Fahir in the head to be charged with attempted murder – and said Fahir had lost all faith in the police since the incident.
Mr Yakoob said all the officers seen in the video should be suspended and even face criminal prosecutions under the joint enterprise law.
Speaking to the SWNS press agency, he said: ‘There may have been an altercation before, but nothing justifies an attempted murder. They need to be arrested. If they were civilians, if they weren’t police officers, they’d be arrested.
‘A woman police officer threatened to taser an innocent bystander because they were filming what her colleagues were doing. If you went on a night out with three or four people and you did that to someone, you’d be on remand right now. It’s joint enterprise.
‘There has to be arrests otherwise people should step down. Arrests have to be made otherwise the public will lost trust in the police completely.’
He added that he was in the process of launching legal action against the police – and if the Crown Prosecution Service refuses to prosecute, then he will look at a private prosecution.