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Daily Mail
5 days ago
- Daily Mail
Armed officer who kicked Manchester Airport 'brawl' brother in the head is 'an uncontrolled bully with a badge', court hears
The armed police officer who kicked a suspect in the head in an airport brawl was 'an uncontrolled bully with a badge ', a court was told today. Police Constable Zachary Marsden had 'defied protocol, ethics, procedure and the law' in the confrontation inn the pay station area of Terminal Two at Manchester airport last July, the jury was told. The trial at Liverpool Crown Court has heard PC Marsden along with PCs Ellie Cook and Lydia Ward were involved in the fracas with brothers Mohammed Amaaz, 20, and Muhammed Amaad, 26. The violent clash was sparked when the officers tried to arrest Amaaz for an earlier assault on a man at the Stabucks café inside the terminal, the jury has been told. CCTV and mobile footage which included PC Marsden kicking Amaaz in the head and stamping on him has been played several times in the four-week trial. Chloe Gardner, defending Amaad, told the jury in her closing speech the CCTV was without sound and was like 'a jigsaw puzzle' with the prosecution asking the jury 'to guess the final picture'. Ms Gardner likened the assessment of the CCTV evidence to watching a TV crime drama with the sound turned down. She said: 'I had Criminal Minds on the TV and I did not have much of a clue about what was going on because the sound was off. I could get the gist but not the full picture. 'CCTV plays a central role here. It can be helpful but it comes with big warning signs because there is no audio and certainly cannot convey what is going on in someone's mind . 'Both sides in this case have played a fair amount of CCTV footage, sometimes at slow speed. We tend to forget how quickly this happened. It was a matter of seconds which has changed the lives of the defendants.' She said the victim in the Starbucks incident, Abdulkareem Ismaeil, has decided not to take things any further and had not given evidence. Ms Gardner said: 'The prosecution say "we have the CCTV and that is all the evidence we need". They have given you a jigsaw puzzle and have asked you to guess the final picture. You cannot assess the stature of Mr Ismaeil and whether he was getting wound up, hostile and intimidating. 'The prosecution have not brought Mr Ismaeil here to fill in the gaps by giving evidence.' She said that it was 'crucial' PC Marsden had 'strode into the pay station' and had grabbed Mr Amaaz without announcing he was a police officer. Ms Gardner said: 'Imagine if grabbing someone and not saying anything became standard police practice. Police Constable Marsden threw away the rule book long ago. His behaviour was aggressive and uncontrolled.' She said Amaa had said 'easy, easy, easy, easy, easy ,no , no ,no' in a bid to de escalate the situation. Ms Gardner continued: 'But these words had zero effect of PC Marsden, who was covered in that red mist. He had no regard for procedure or doing things the right way. He acted how he wanted. His way was the only way.' 'The reality is that PC Marsden, with his firearm and his Taser, was a firearm in himself.' She said PC Marsden hit the brothers' mother in the face with his Taser during the struggle and had continued to assault Amaad even when he had his hands on his head and when his brother was handcuffed on the ground. Ms Gardner said the officer had smashed Mr Amaad's face in the ground when he was trying to restrain him and had placed his knee on his neck. She said: 'PC Marsden could have killed Mr Amaaz with the kick and he could have suffocated Mr Amaad.' Trial judge Neil Flewitt told the jury they will begin their deliberations on Monday after he has summed up the evidence in the case. Amaaz denies one charge of assault by beating, two charges of assault causing actual bodily harm and one charge of assault by beating of a police officer acting as an emergency worker. His elder brother Muhammed Amaad,26, is accused of one charge of assault causing actual bodily harm on PC Marsden. The brothers from Rochdale, Greater Manchester claim they were acting in self defence.
Yahoo
18-07-2025
- Yahoo
Manchester Airport suspect: I had no idea officers I punched were women
A man accused of attacking police at Manchester airport has told a jury he did not know that two of the officers he knocked to the ground were women. Mohammed Fahir Amaaz, 20, claims he was acting in self-defence, or in defence of his brother, when he struck out at Pc Lydia Ward, Pc Ellie Cook and Pc Zachary Marsden. The Greater Manchester Police officers entered the Terminal 2 car park pay station after reports that a man fitting Amaaz's description had headbutted a member of the public inside the airport just minutes before, on July 23 last year. Prosecutors say Mr Amaaz resisted arrest and his brother, Muhammad Amaad, 26, intervened as both subjected the officers to a 'high level of violence'. Credit: CPS Mr Amaaz has told Liverpool Crown Court that he feared Pc Marsden would 'batter him' to death as he said he was grabbed by the head and neck, and pushed downwards. Cross-examining Mr Amaaz on Friday, Paul Greaney KC said: 'You were, in simple terms, resisting the attempts of these officers to arrest you?' Mr Amaaz said: 'If those officers wanted to detain me they could have simply told me so.' Mr Greaney said: 'What did you think they were coming in to do? To come in and murder you?' Mr Amaaz said: 'These officers had come and literally forced me straight into the ticket machine. They didn't give me a second to think. 'My brother intervenes because this officer is trying to force me down to the ground.' Mr Greaney told jurors that Mr Amaaz went on to kick Pc Marsden as he struggled with Mr Amaad, and that Mr Amaaz then punched Pc Cook to the face. He said: 'You knew full well you were punching a woman.' 'No,' said Mr Amaaz. Mr Greaney said: 'She has long blonde hair in a ponytail, I ask you to acknowledge that you knew you were delivering blows to the face of a woman?' Mr Amaaz said: 'I didn't know that at this stage.' Credit: CPS Mr Greaney pointed out to Mr Amaaz that he was looking straight in the direction of Pc Ward when he then punched her to the face and broke her nose. Mr Greaney said: 'Is it your position that Pc Ward was part of a group that was trying to murder you?' Mr Amaaz said: 'She was part of that group. I believed Pc Marsden tried to kill me.' Mr Greaney said: 'Do you still believe that now?' 'Yes,' said the defendant. Mr Greaney said: 'The prosecution case is there was absolutely nothing defensive in punching that woman (Pc Ward) in the face. It was offensive and unlawful, and you were wholly out of control.' Mr Greaney said footage showed Pc Cook approach Mr Amaaz to detain him because of his violence. Mr Amaaz said: 'No, she literally came running at me with her hands raised towards my face. I felt any second now this officer is going to attack me and I needed to protect myself.' Mr Greaney said: 'At your feet is an injured officer and she (Pc Cook) is coming towards you with her hands open. It was obvious she wanted to detain you and stop you committing any further violence.' Mr Amaaz said: 'I was not looking at her face.' Mr Greaney told the defendant that the footage showed Pc Cook 'flinching away' from a punch that was about to land. Mr Greaney said: 'Do you agree that your violence knocked her to the ground?' Mr Amaaz said: 'Yes, I struck her.' The prosecutor said: 'This is the second woman you have hit to the floor within seconds.' 'Yes,' said Mr Amaaz. Mr Greaney said: 'All of those 12 blows were against people you knew virtually from the outset were police officers, that's what you did that day?' Mr Amaaz said: 'I didn't know from the start. 'This lunatic (Pc Marsden) booted me in the head and stamped on me, 'If that's not enough he elbowed my mother in the face with a Taser. 'And if that's not enough he punched my brother in the back of the head twice.' Mr Amaaz agreed with Mr Greaney that following his arrest he made no comment in his police interview. Mr Amaaz is alleged to have assaulted Pc Marsden and Pc Ward, causing them actual bodily harm. He is also accused of the assault of emergency worker Pc Cook, and the earlier assault of a member of the public, Abdulkareem Ismaeil, at a Starbucks cafe in T2 arrivals. Mr Amaad is alleged to have assaulted Pc Marsden, causing actual bodily harm. Both men, from Rochdale, Greater Manchester, deny the allegations. The trial continues on Monday. Solve the daily Crossword
Telegraph
18-07-2025
- Telegraph
Manchester Airport suspect: I had no idea officers I punched were women
A man accused of attacking police at Manchester airport has told a jury he did not know that two of the officers he knocked to the ground were women. Mohammed Fahir Amaaz, 20, claims he was acting in self-defence, or in defence of his brother, when he struck out at Pc Lydia Ward, Pc Ellie Cook and Pc Zachary Marsden. The Greater Manchester Police officers entered the Terminal 2 car park pay station after reports that a man fitting Amaaz's description had headbutted a member of the public inside the airport just minutes before, on July 23 last year. Prosecutors say Mr Amaaz resisted arrest and his brother, Muhammad Amaad, 26, intervened as both subjected the officers to a 'high level of violence'. Mr Amaaz has told Liverpool Crown Court that he feared Pc Marsden would 'batter him' to death as he said he was grabbed by the head and neck, and pushed downwards. Cross-examining Mr Amaaz on Friday, Paul Greaney KC said: 'You were, in simple terms, resisting the attempts of these officers to arrest you?' Mr Amaaz said: 'If those officers wanted to detain me they could have simply told me so.' Mr Greaney said: 'What did you think they were coming in to do? To come in and murder you?' Mr Amaaz said: 'These officers had come and literally forced me straight into the ticket machine. They didn't give me a second to think. 'My brother intervenes because this officer is trying to force me down to the ground.' Mr Greaney told jurors that Mr Amaaz went on to kick Pc Marsden as he struggled with Mr Amaad, and that Mr Amaaz then punched Pc Cook to the face. He said: 'You knew full well you were punching a woman.' 'No,' said Mr Amaaz. Mr Greaney said: 'She has long blonde hair in a ponytail, I ask you to acknowledge that you knew you were delivering blows to the face of a woman?' Mr Amaaz said: 'I didn't know that at this stage.' Mr Greaney pointed out to Mr Amaaz that he was looking straight in the direction of Pc Ward when he then punched her to the face and broke her nose. Mr Greaney said: 'Is it your position that Pc Ward was part of a group that was trying to murder you?' Mr Amaaz said: 'She was part of that group. I believed Pc Marsden tried to kill me.' Mr Greaney said: 'Do you still believe that now?' 'Yes,' said the defendant. Mr Greaney said: 'The prosecution case is there was absolutely nothing defensive in punching that woman (Pc Ward) in the face. It was offensive and unlawful, and you were wholly out of control.' Mr Greaney said footage showed Pc Cook approach Mr Amaaz to detain him because of his violence. Mr Amaaz said: 'No, she literally came running at me with her hands raised towards my face. I felt any second now this officer is going to attack me and I needed to protect myself.' Mr Greaney said: 'At your feet is an injured officer and she (Pc Cook) is coming towards you with her hands open. It was obvious she wanted to detain you and stop you committing any further violence.' Mr Amaaz said: 'I was not looking at her face.' Mr Greaney told the defendant that the footage showed Pc Cook 'flinching away' from a punch that was about to land. Mr Greaney said: 'Do you agree that your violence knocked her to the ground?' Mr Amaaz said: 'Yes, I struck her.' The prosecutor said: 'This is the second woman you have hit to the floor within seconds.' 'Yes,' said Mr Amaaz. Mr Greaney said: 'All of those 12 blows were against people you knew virtually from the outset were police officers, that's what you did that day?' Mr Amaaz said: 'I didn't know from the start. 'This lunatic (Pc Marsden) booted me in the head and stamped on me, 'If that's not enough he elbowed my mother in the face with a Taser. 'And if that's not enough he punched my brother in the back of the head twice.' Mr Amaaz agreed with Mr Greaney that following his arrest he made no comment in his police interview. Mr Amaaz is alleged to have assaulted Pc Marsden and Pc Ward, causing them actual bodily harm. He is also accused of the assault of emergency worker Pc Cook, and the earlier assault of a member of the public, Abdulkareem Ismaeil, at a Starbucks cafe in T2 arrivals. Mr Amaad is alleged to have assaulted Pc Marsden, causing actual bodily harm. Both men, from Rochdale, Greater Manchester, deny the allegations. The trial continues on Monday.
BBC News
18-07-2025
- BBC News
Manchester Airport brawl accused 'didn't know' he hit female PCs
A student who hit two police officers to the floor at Manchester Airport has told jurors he did not know they were Amaaz, 20, claimed he was acting in self-defence or defending his brother when he struck out at PCs Lydia Ward and Ellie Cook, as well as PC Zachary Crown Court heard the Greater Manchester Police (GMP) officers entered Terminal 2 car park's pay station area on 23 July 2024 after reports that a male fitting Mr Amaaz's description had just headbutted a member of the say Mr Amaaz resisted arrest while Muhammad Amaad, 26, intervened, with both allegedly subjecting police to a "high level of violence". Mr Amaad also denies assault. Mr Amaaz previously told jurors he feared PC Marsden would "batter him" to death after he was grabbed by the head and neck and pushed cross-examination, prosecutor Paul Greaney KC asked Mr Amaaz whether he was "resisting" the attempts of officers to arrest him."If those officers wanted to detain me they could have simply told me so," replied the accused."These officers had come and literally forced me straight into the ticket machine. They didn't give me a second to think."Mr Greaney told members of the jury that Mr Amaaz went on to kick PC Marsden as the officer struggled with Mr he said Mr Amaaz then punched PC Cook to the said: "You knew full well you were punching a woman.""No," responded Mr Amaaz. "I didn't know that at this stage."Mr Greaney pointed out to the accused that in CCTV footage he was looking straight in the direction of PC Ward when he then punched her to the face and broke her said: "Can I invite you to acknowledge that you knew obviously she was a woman, a woman with long red hair?"Amaaz replied: "Not at this moment, no. This has happened so quickly. It is a matter of seconds." Mr Greaney asked whether he thought PC Ward was part of a group trying to murder Amaaz said: "She was part of that group. I believed PC Marsden tried to kill me."The prosecutor asked the defendant: "Do you still believe that now?""Yes."Mr Greaney accused Mr Amaaz of being "wholly out of control", something which the 20-year-old student barrister then asked Mr Amaaz whether he thought PC Cook was "intent on killing" replied: "At this point I thought this officer is going to attack me. I didn't think she would kill me."Mr Greaney said: "Do you agree that your violence knocked her to the ground?"Mr Amaaz replied: "Yes, I struck her." 'Stamped on me' Mr Greaney: "This is the second woman you have hit to the floor within seconds?""Yes," replied Mr Greaney said: "All of this violence was offensive and entirely unlawful."Mr Amaaz told the court: "These were police officers who were attacking me and my brother again and again, trying to kill us."This lunatic (PC Marsden) booted me in the head and stamped on me."Mr Amaaz denies assaulting PC Marsden and PC Ward, causing them actual bodily also denies assaulting emergency worker PC Cook, and the earlier assault of a member of the public, Abdulkareem Ismaeil, at a Starbucks cafe in Terminal 2's arrivals Amaad denies assaulting PC Marsden, causing actual bodily trial of the brothers, both from Rochdale in Greater Manchester, will resume on Monday. Listen to the best of BBC Radio Manchester on Sounds and follow BBC Manchester on Facebook, X, and Instagram. You can also send story ideas via Whatsapp to 0808 100 2230.
Daily Mail
18-07-2025
- Daily Mail
I didn't know police officers I was punching were women, student tells Manchester Airport brawl trial
A man has told a jury he did not know that two police officers he hit to the floor within seconds at Manchester Airport were women. A jury has been shown CCTV of Mohammed Fahir Amaaz punching unarmed officer Lydia Ward in the face, breaking her nose and leaving her covered in blood. The trial at Liverpool crown court has also been shown CCTV of Amaaz, 20, being kicked in the head and stamped on by armed officer Zachary Marsden in the brawl at Terminal Two in Manchester airport last July. Amaaz told the court yesterday that the 12 blows he rained on three separate police officers in the confrontation were 'defensive and not offensive' and were only delivered to protect himself. He was cross examined by Paul Greaney, KC, for the prosecution who played him the CCTV footage from the airport terminal, which went viral on the internet. Mr Greaney said: 'Before you struck a single blow, you knew these were police officers.' Amaaz replied: 'Police officers who were attacking me and my brother again and again, trying to kill us. This lunatic booted me in the head and stamped on me. Mohammed Fahir Amaaz is seen arriving at Liverpool Crown Court at the start of his trial 'If that was not enough he elbowed my mother in the face with a Taser and if that was not enough , he punched my brother in the back of the head, twice. This man was attempting to kill us.' 'I was lying on the floor and I was vulnerable.' Mr Greaney said the kick and the stamp came after Amaaz had struck 12 blows and could not be used to ' justify ' the violence he used. Mr Greaney said: 'All the violence was completely offensive, not defensive, and unlawful. You were completely out of control.' Amaaz replied: 'I was scared s***less. These officers were attacking us again and again. They would not stop.' Mr Greaney told Amaaz that it was ' glaringly obvious ' that PC Ward was a woman when he hit her in the face. The CCTV showed Amaaz looking straight in her face and she had long red hair and was not wearing a cap. Amaaz replied: 'Not at that moment, no. I had seen my brother being punched in the face. I felt a strike to my throat and it was instinct to re act at the same time. It all happened so quick, it was a matter of seconds.' Mr Greaney said: 'You punched her in the face.' Amaaz replied: 'I did not know where the punch was going. It was a officer had punched me in the throat. I was trying the defend myself.' A trial at Liverpool Crown Court has been shown CCTV footage of Mohammed Fahir Amaaz, 20, swinging a punch at Manchester Airport - with PC Lydia Ward hit in the nose He said that Ward and her colleagues PC Ellie Cook and PC Marsden were 'part of the group' who were trying to kill him. Amaaz said: 'She was part of that group. I believe PC Marsden was trying to kill me.' Mr Greaney said: 'You have punched a female police officer in the face. You have broken her nose. There was nothing defensive about punching a woman. You were wholly out of control.' Amaaz replied: 'At this point I was scared. These officers were attacking us for no reason. They had not spoken to us and they had not spoken to each other.' He said that he did not realise it was a police officer who first grabbed hold of him at the ticket machine inside the pay station. He said: 'They could have simply said 'you are detained' or 'you are under arrest' I have never been in that type of situation. 'I was forced into that situation. I was protecting me and my brother when this officer punched me in the face several times.' Mr Greaney said: 'You knew he was a police officer almost from the start and you knew why they were there.' Amaaz said: 'They did not give me a chance to think about anything. If they wanted to detain me, they could have told me and I would have let them do what they had to do. They did not give me a second to think about anything or to say anything.' The court has been told that the brawl was sparked by an altercation between the brothers and a plane passenger called Abdulkareem Ismaeil over an alleged insult to the brothers' mother. Amaaz accepted that Mr Ismaeil had 'not laid a finger on him ' but insisted that he was threatening him and saying, 'I will f***ing kill you.' He denied that he had acted 'out of anger and revenge' when he head butted Mr Ismaeil in front of his wife and two children in the Starbucks at Terminal Two. Amaaz said he had wanted to get Mr Ismaeil to apologise to his mother, who claimed he had called her 'a P*** bitch' and had pushed his luggage trolley into her legs. He said: 'I did not want to escalate it. I put it to him what my Mum had told me and said to him if it was true could he please apologise.' 'He said 'who are you, I will smash you. I will f***ing kill you.' The CCTV shows that I am stood on the spot and he stepped toward me. I was upset about about what had been done to my mother.' Amaaz said: 'It was instinctive. He was closing me down and it was in my mind to get this man away.' Mr Greaney said the CCTV showed Amaaz, who is left handed, swing a left had punch at Mr Ismaeil out of ' anger and revenge.' He said said: 'You delivered a forceful head butt to the face of Mr Ismaeil. As a matter of fact that man you head butted, that person was no threat to you and you didn't believe for a moment he was a threat to you and you were acting out of revenge and that's the truth.' Amaaz said: 'I swung a punch. I do not know if it connected. It was my intention to get this man away from me. He was shouting threats at me and threatening to kill me and smash me. He got so close I could feel his spit on my face. 'I thought that in a second, he was going to attack me. I was shocked. I was just protecting myself.' Amaaz denies one charge of assault by beating, two charges of assault causing actual bodily harm and one charge of assault by beating of a police officer acting as an emergency worker. His elder brother Muhammed Amaad, 26, is accused of one charge of assault causing actual bodily harm on PC Marsden. The brothers from Rochdale, Greater Manchester claim they were acting in self defence.
