🔴 Jury Hears All Evidence in Manchester Airport Assault Trial

The jury has heard all the evidence in the trial of the two brothers accused of assaulting Greater Manchester Police officers in the car park pay area of T2, Manchester Airport. After last week, where much of the time was devoted to the testimony of police officers which we covered in our article here, both brothers have now given their testimony. 

For the remainder of this week, jurors will hear closing speeches from the prosecution and the defence summing up their cases, before Judge Flewitt KC, presiding over proceedings at Liverpool Crown Court, gives jurors legal directions for their deliberations.

Jury deliberations are expected to begin on Friday or Monday.

Video evidence of the alleged assaults has been played in court and the defence have not disputed that Mr. Amaaz head-butted and swung a punch at a member of the public who did not physically attack him, in T2 Starbucks, and that minutes later the defendants struck multiple times at people they had recognised at the time as uniformed officers, resulting in injuries including a broken nose.

The Crown argues that these were acts of aggression, the defence argues that they were acts of lawful and proportionate self-defence in the face of perceived threat or violence.

Regarding the defendant’s intentions and whether they intended to cooperate with police, the court heard that that Mr. Amaaz tensed up when officers seized his arms from behind and resisted their efforts to control his movements. Mr. Amaaz testified that he would have complied with police if he had understood what was going on, but as the officers confirmed to the court, that they had not verbally announced their intentions to the defendants. Mr Amaaz agreed that he had recognised PC Marsden as a police officer when he turned around, but told the court he had not had time to think and properly understand the situation. He testified had he had also not concluded that the person holding his other arm was also a police officer. 

Both brothers testified that it had not occurred to them that the officers were effecting an arrest of Mr. Amaaz over the earlier head-butt incident.

Mr. Amaaz also faces charges over this earlier incident, where he does not dispute that he head-butted and swung a punch at a passenger who his mother claimed had verbally and physically abused her. Mr. Amaaz claimed that he acted in response to the man’s shouted threats and believed violence would be imminently used against him. 
The court also heard the defendants deny that Mr. Amaaz’s mother and older brother were trying to hold him back from further attacking the man, with Mr. Amaad saying specifically that when he got in-between Mr. Amaaz and the passenger, it was not to break up a fight.

The brothers denied claims that Amaaz was the aggressor, although two members of staff at the Starbucks cafe where the altercation occurred told the court that their impression had been that Mr. Amaaz was the aggressor. 

The court has been shown full video footage of the escalating violence in the later incident, and heard full witness testimony of how it developed. Mr. Amaad told the court that when he saw his brother’s head being pushed down by PC Zachary Marsden, he feared Mr. Amaaz was being choked and stepped in to restrain PC Marsden. This intervention by Mr. Amaad lead to to an escalating police response, with firearms officers PC Marsden and PC Ellie Cook each punching Mr. Amaad. Mr. Amaaz testified that the strikes by officers to his brother prompted him to further strike out at officers, in defence of Mr. Amaad.

Both brothers testified that they believe the force they used against officers was at every moment proportional and necessary to deal with the perceived threat. Mr. Amaad denied that continuing to punch PC Marsden when he had been forced backward onto seating was unnecessary, and Mr. Amaaz said that his punch to the face of a female officer was in a context where he had identified her as part of the group attempting to kill him, in public and in front of witnesses, and suggested that although video stills presented in court showed him looking straight at her, had not had time to register that she was a woman, and punched out instinctively, not knowing where his punches were landing.

Throughout proceedings, jurors have been instructed to base all their judgements on the evidence presented in court and to avoid press or social media coverage of the trial.

With all evidence presented, the closing statements will provide the defence and the prosecution with the opportunity to sum up their arguments, highlighting key supporting evidence,

Stay with us for continued updates in our live court feed .

Well, that’s all for now. But until our next article, please stay tuned, stay informed, but most of all stay safe, and I’ll see you then.