Burnham: No one has a complete picture of the incident at Manchester Airport

The Mayor of Greater Manchester said “nobody has a full picture” of the incident at Manchester Airport that occurred earlier this week.

Protests broke out in Rochdale and Manchester city centre after a video circulated showing a police officer allegedly kicking and stamping on a man as he lay face down during an arrest at the airport on Tuesday.

Andy Burnham urged people to “step back” and let the authorities conduct their investigations after the Manchester Evening News released new footage on Saturday purporting to show the lead-up to the incident.

A Greater Manchester Police officer has been informed that he is under criminal investigation for assault in connection with the incident, the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) said on Friday.

Speaking on Sky News’ Sunday Morning With Trevor Phillips, Mr Burnham said: “It’s a complicated situation, a very violent situation actually, and there have been problems on both sides.

“That’s why I asked other people not to judge too quickly, because the issue is so complex and no one knows all the facts, even if everyone expresses their opinion. No one knows the whole picture.”

The new video appears to show a group of people standing at ticket machines in Terminal Two (T2), and a man dressed in light blue is standing in front of one of the machines.

Apparently, male and female police officers attempted to detain two men and struck them several times before one of the men was shot with a taser.

An officer and a man in blue appear to wrestle with each other until the latter lies motionless face down on the ground with a woman kneeling beside him.

The officer then appears to kick and stomp on his head, as seen in the footage that has already been widely circulated.

Asked when a conclusion from the Independent Office for Police Conduct could be expected, Burnham said: “I know it’s frustrating the world we live in. Everyone wants instant conclusions, but that’s not life, is it?”

“Over the last few days, people have been making complete judgments about one side or the other. You pick a side in this whole thing and the truth is always somewhere in between.”

“Life is more complicated than people sometimes portray it on social media.”

Greater Manchester Police have opened a public portal for further footage and are appealing for witness statements to three incidents.

The first reason is an “altercation between passengers” on Qatar Airways flight QR023, which arrived at 19:20 and which is reported to have possibly taken place in the baggage hall of the boarding gate or in T2.

At around 8:22 p.m. there was a “violent altercation with members of the public” in T2, GMP said.

At 8:28 p.m., three police officers were attacked in the parking ticket area of ​​the terminal and suffered head injuries, including a broken nose, it said.

The family of the man who was reportedly kicked and trampled appealed for “calm” and urged people not to take part in further protests, their MP said on Saturday.

Paul Waugh, the newly elected Labour MP for Rochdale, shared a statement written by the family urging people to give those affected “time to heal” and “due process”.

The officer, against whom criminal proceedings have been initiated, was also issued a disciplinary notice informing him that he was being investigated for possible gross misconduct in connection with a number of alleged breaches of police professional standards, including the use of force, an IOPC spokesman said.

On Wednesday, a large crowd protested outside Rochdale police station, reportedly chanting “GMP, shame on you”, while on Thursday demonstrators blocked roads and tram tracks in a protest that began outside Mr Burnham’s office in Manchester city centre.

Published: 28.07.2024 by Radio NewsHub