‘TikTok lawyer’ speaks out after new footage emerges from Manchester Airport showing exactly what happened before police officer ‘kicked’ man

The lawyer for the family involved in the incident at Manchester Airport has spoken out after new footage emerged of the violent scenes that took place before a Greater Manchester Police officer kicked a man in the head.

Yesterday, the Manchester Evening News obtained the exclusive footage, believed to capture the lead-up to the incident that has sparked controversy and protests since it surfaced on social media. Previously shared footage appeared to show the officer kicking and stomping on a man’s head as he lay on the ground.

The new footage shows the chaotic scenes leading up to that moment, involving two men and several police officers in a parking lot in Terminal 2 on Tuesday (July 23). In the clip, a police officer can be seen grabbing a man’s hands to restrain him before the officer and the men trade blows.

CONTINUE READING: New video from Manchester Airport shows violent scenes before a man is kicked in the head by a GMP officer

One of the men – dressed in light blue – who was initially arrested then appeared to break free and throw several punches at the policewomen. The clip then shows both women receiving blows to the head and face, knocking one of them to the ground.

An officer then appeared to point a taser at the man before appearing to kick and stamp on his head as he lay on the ground. A GMP police officer has been informed he is under criminal investigation for assault occasioning actual bodily harm over the incident, the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) said on Friday.

In light of the new footage, the lawyer representing the family involved in the incident has said he is “not promoting violence”. Akhmed Yakoob, a 36-year-old lawyer from Birmingham who has nearly 210,000 followers on TikTok, shared a clip on X at around 6.25pm ​​yesterday (Saturday) after the footage was released.

In the clip, he said: “I do not support violence.” He added: “I de-escalated the whole situation and asked the protesters outside Rochdale police station to go home.”

“I attended a protest in Manchester city centre where protesters threatened to stop tram services. I urged them not to do this, calmed them down and they went home.

“I have asked everyone not to take part in the protest at Manchester Airport. We are not here to make public life difficult.

“No, we want justice for the family and it will happen.” Mr Yakoob also responded to another user on X who said that “everyone is entitled to a defense.”

The user added: “The case is complex and to help, brother @Akhmedyakoob1 has stepped up. No doubt he will receive a barrage of distasteful comments but hats off to him for his service.”

Mr Yakoob replied: “This is normal. I have been receiving hate messages for years. The truth is that people are quick to judge the actions of others while sitting at home.

“This case has rightly been brought into the spotlight. I do what I do from the bottom of my heart and not for money.”

Andy Burnham last night urged people “not to jump to conclusions” after the new footage emerged, with the Mayor of Greater Manchester having previously said he had seen “all the footage” leading up to the incident.

He said it was not a “clear-cut situation” but explained there had been a “serious incident” before the situation escalated “very quickly”. In a statement released last night, the Labour mayor reiterated his call for “no hasty judgements”.

He urged people to “step back” and let the IOPC investigation move forward. He said: “As I said on Thursday, this is a complicated situation with two sides. That is why I have urged people not to rush to judgement.”

“Four people have been arrested and are now out on bail following incidents leading up to the footage which people have seen. It is frustrating that we have not been able to release more video to the public but that is because this is a live investigation.

“People now need to step back and allow the IOPC’s criminal investigation into the officer’s conduct to progress in parallel with GMP’s parallel investigations into other possible criminal offences so that a full picture can be presented.

“As all of these investigations are ongoing, it would not be appropriate to comment further.” On Friday evening, the IOPC said that a police officer was being investigated for assault. The IOPC stressed that this did not necessarily mean that charges would be brought.

However, the regulator confirmed that it would decide whether to refer the case to the Crown Prosecution Service once its investigation was complete. Last night, GMP launched an appeal for information on three incidents that allegedly preceded the events captured in the video.

They said the first incident they are investigating was an “altercation between passengers” on Qatar Airways flight QR023 from Doha to Manchester, which arrived at 7.20pm. “The altercation may have occurred during the flight or afterwards in the baggage hall of T2,” they said.

They are also investigating a “violent disturbance involving citizens at Starbucks T2” at about 8:22 p.m. This was followed by “the attack by three police officers that occurred at 8:28 p.m. in the parking ticket area of ​​the T2 parking lot,” they said.

“The three officers suffered head injuries, including a broken nose,” they added. The police have set up a public portal where information, images and videos can be shared.

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