Police officer suspended for excessive use of force at Manchester Airport

This Tuesday afternoon, July 23, images of an episode of excessive police use of force in Manchester, United Kingdom, went viral on social networks, generating a wave of public outrage. The video, recorded at Manchester Airport Terminal 2, shows a Greater Manchester Police officer kicking and stepping on a man's head during an arrest.

The recording, which was widely shared on X (formerly Twitter), begins with the officer pointing a Taser at the detainee, who is lying face down on the ground. Next to the man are an acquaintance of his and several other agents.

A few seconds later, the officer stops using the Taser and opts to kick the man's head and stomp on him. “Damn!”, the author of the video can be heard shouting, while a police woman asks him to move away from the scene.

During the rest of the sequence, the uniformed officers proceed to make a second arrest of an alleged accomplice and ask witnesses to leave the area of ​​the operation.

In response to the video going viral, Greater Manchester Police issued a statement calling the footage "alarming" and providing context around the incident.

According to the statement, agents had been notified of several robbery attempts in Terminal 2 of the airport. The suspect, the man seen being kicked in the video, was spotted by security cameras and officers moved to arrest him.

During the operation, some officers were assaulted, resulting in the broken nose of one officer and injuries to others that required hospital treatment.

The statement, signed by Wasim Chaudry, assistant chief officer of Greater Manchester Police, concludes with the information that an officer has been suspended and that a review of the police response has been raised to the Independent Office for Police Conduct. Two men were arrested on suspicion of attempted robbery and obstructing police.