Police officers were 'dragged to the ground' and 'burned by a cigarette' as they tried to break up a 'large' illegal gathering in Bolton.
Greater Manchester Police bosses have hit out at the incident, calling the behaviour 'completely unacceptable' and saying that officers 'should not have to be fearful of assault whilst carrying out their duties'.
At around 4.40pm on Monday, February 22, police attended an address on Wigan Road, Bolton, following reports of a large illegal gathering.
Upon arrival, the police officers discovered that a 'large number of people from various households' were at the home - in breach of current Covid-19 restrictions.
As officers attempted to disperse the gathering and issue Fixed Penalty Notices, they were met with 'hostility' which led to two officers being assaulted.
One officer was grabbed and dragged to the ground and a second officer was burnt with a cigarette after coming to her colleague's assistance, according to the force.
A 60-year-old man was arrested on suspicion of two counts of assault of an emergency worker. He has since been released under investigation.
Police have issued 13 Fixed Penalty Notices so far to those in attendance and a closure notice was issued for the premises.
Chief Inspector Stuart Maley-Jones, of GMP's Bolton division, said: "This was a blatant breach of COVID legislation and it's shocking that two of our officers have been assaulted whilst responding to this incident.
"This behaviour is completely unacceptable. Our officers are doing their very best to maintain public safety in the midst of a pandemic and should not have to be fearful of assault whilst carrying out their duties.
"I would like to remind the public of the importance of adhering to the regulations.
"We can now see a light at the end of the tunnel, but to reach that light we must do everything we can to reduce the number of virus transmissions and help keep our community safe and protected."
