A police officer is under criminal investigation over an alleged leak to the media of CCTV footage of the Manchester Airport fracas.
In July 2024, the Manchester Evening News (MEN) published a video taken from CCTV of the incident, days after a mobile phone clip shared online showed a police officer kicking and stamping on a young Asian man as he lay on the floor.
The phone footage went viral and sparked protests in Manchester city centre and outside Rochdale police station before the MEN’s footage revealed that in the lead up to the actions, a female police officer was punched in the face.
Last week Mohammed Fahir Amaaz, 20 – the man on the floor – was convicted by a jury at Liverpool Crown Court of assaulting Pc Lydia Ward causing her actual bodily harm after he broke her nose.
He was also convicted of assaulting her Greater Manchester Police (GMP) colleague Pc Ellie Cook during the incident at the airport’s Terminal 2 car park pay station on July 23.
Amaaz and his brother, Muhammad Ahmed, 26, both from Rochdale, face a retrial next year over an allegation they assaulted Pc Zachary Marsden – the officer seen to kick and stamp.
A probe by the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) into the use of force by GMP officers during a series of arrests at the airport on July 23 remains ongoing.
But the police watchdog has confirmed a separate investigation is under way over the alleged leak.
An IOPC spokesman said: “We can confirm a Greater Manchester Police officer was recently informed they are being criminally investigated over an allegation they shared footage relating to an active police investigation into an incident at Manchester Airport in July 2024 without any legitimate policing purpose.
“We began our independent investigation following a referral from the force in September 2024, after concerns were raised about the source of a video provided to the media.
“We will now investigate these allegations and obtain an account from the officer concerned in due course.”
The officer has been informed they are being investigated over a number of potential offences including unlawful obtaining of personal data, misconduct in a public office and perverting the course of justice.
In an opinion piece on Wednesday, MEN editor Sarah Lester said the footage it published “provided critical context” and pointed out that the protests “stopped overnight”.
She wrote: “After a careful process of verification and intense internal debate, we published it.
“We did so because we believed, and still believe, that in a democracy, the public deserves the full picture.
“Many senior figures in Manchester, including within the police, told us they were relieved, even grateful, that we had published it.”
Ms Lester went on: “We do not know the identity of the person being investigated and we make no comment on them or the investigation.
“But we do ask: what public interest is being served by pursuing this individual? How much taxpayer money is being spent on this – while the justice system groans under the weight of backlogs and delays?
“What message does this send to others who might be considering speaking up? This is a bad decision.”
