"Two sides of the story" - thousands sign petition to reinstate GMP officer suspended after viral kicking video

Further footage of last week’s Manchester Airport kick video widens the lens and triggers outrage in the community - with calls to reinstate the suspended GMP officer who kicked the man in the original video.

A petition to reinstate the police officer suspended after the Manchester Airport incident has amassed over 15,000 signatures, with Mayor Andy Burnham acknowledging that there are "two sides" to the story.

The initial footage, which showed a police officer kicking and stamping on a man’s head, was followed by new footage revealing the moments leading up to the incident. This new video depicted officers being repeatedly punched, with one female officer sustaining a broken nose.
 

Read more: Hundreds protest at police station after it emerges man in shocking airport footage is from Rochdale Published: 25 July 2024

Andy Burnham expressed frustration that the broader context took days to surface, attributing the delay to it being a "live investigation."

As a result of this new footage, the petition advocating for the reinstatement of the suspended officer has gained significant support.

The petition states: "This officer should be receiving praise for his courage in dealing with these trouble causers who hospitalised three police officers and broke the nose of a female police officer." It further contends that the men in the video should be charged for assaulting the officers, urging GMP to: "Reinstate the Manchester firearms officer without charge; he was only doing his job."
 

Read more: Family request “time to heal” after brutal airport video of police stamping on man’s headPublished: 26 July 2024

In a statement, Andy Burnham remarked: "As I said on Thursday, this is a complicated situation with two sides to it. It is why I urged people not to rush to judgement. Following incidents in the run-up to the footage people saw this week, four individuals were arrested and are now on police bail.

"It is frustrating that we have not been able to put more video into the public domain, but that is because this is a live investigation.

"People now need to step back and allow the IOPC's criminal investigation into the officer’s conduct to move forward, alongside the parallel GMP investigation into other potential offences, so that a complete picture can be presented. Given all these investigations are ongoing, it would not be appropriate to comment further."

Rochdale MP Paul Waugh faced backlash late last week for supporting the man’s family but has since clarified that "any perpetrator of the criminal attacks should face the full force of the law." He added that the footage of a police officer kicking and stamping on a man was "indeed shocking" and supported the swift action by the Independent Office for Police Conduct.

 

 

He continued: "The video of police officers being attacked is deeply shocking too, and the public will rightly demand that those responsible are brought to justice.

"That’s why it’s important, as I said last night, that anyone with any information contacts Greater Manchester Police about the three incidents that preceded the footage people saw last week.

"All our communities in Rochdale are united in a strong belief in the rule of law, that the criminal justice system should follow the evidence and that offenders should be punished appropriately.

"It was crucially important that the original, viral footage did not lead to wider violence, and I’m pleased that after I met the brother and parents of those involved in this incident, their pleas for calm and for people not to attend further protests were heeded in Rochdale."