Family of man kicked by police left âtraumatisedâ
The family of a man who was kicked and stamped on by a police officer at Manchester Airport have been left âtraumatisedâ, a solicitor representing them has said.
Akhmed Yakoob was speaking on behalf of brothers Muhammad Fahir Amaaz and Amaad Amaaz, who were both involved in the incident.
Footage was shared online of a Greater Manchester Police (GMP) firearms officer â who has since been suspended â striking a man twice as he lay prone on the floor.
The force said the officerâs actions came after he and other colleagues were âviolently attackedâ at about 20:30 BST on Tuesday.
GMP said it happened after officers tried to arrest someone in the airportâs Terminal 2 after a fight.
The force said it understood the âdeep concernsâ that had been âwidely raisedâ.
The footage sparked a protest outside Rochdale police station on Wednesday night, with hundreds of people gathered, and chants of âshame on youâ heard.
Four men were later arrested on suspicion of assault and affray, and all have since been bailed.
The footage was described as âshockingâ by MPs and other commentators, and the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) said it was investigating the âlevel of forceâ used.
Mr Yakoob said the medical condition of the man who was kicked, who he named as Fahir Amaaz, had worsened overnight and âa CT scan has revealed there is a cyst on his brainâ.
The solicitor also revealed the brothers are family members of a serving GMP officer.
âLevel of forceâ
Speaking outside Rochdale police station, where protests broke out last night in reaction to the incident, Mr Yakoob said the incident was an example of âbrutalityâ.
He continued: âThe people who were assaulted by the police are members of a police officerâs family.
âThis man is now afraid to go to work. He went in today and spoke to his supervisor, and the only reason he is not going to work is because he is fearing for his own safety and he thinks, like his family members were the victims, he could be a victim.
âThe family are OK but they are traumatised.â
Mr Yakoob said he had met with the IOPC but could not go into detail as it was in the âearly stagesâ of its investigation.
âFor me the main concern is the family receive justice, and this no longer happens again,â he said.
Earlier Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer said he understood the publicâs concern over the footage and there was now âa processâ following the suspension of the officer.
Home Secretary Yvette Cooper said she shared âthe deep concern surrounding the videoâ.
In a statement, she said it was âextremely importantâ the police watchdog was able to begin its investigation âswiftly and conduct it thoroughlyâ.
Mr Burnham told BBC Radio Manchester he had seen âthe full footageâ that showed a âfast-moving and complicated situation in a challenging location â itâs not clear cutâ.
âTime has been taken to get a clearer picture of what has happened,â he said, adding that an investigation needed to proceed now âin a thorough and measured wayâ.
The Greater Manchester Police Federation said it ânotedâ the decision of the force to suspend the officer.
A spokesman added: âThe matter is now under investigation â everyone has the right to a fair hearing where all sides of the story are told and context is provided.â
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