Jury Retires in Manchester Airport Police Assault Trial

After four weeks of evidence and legal wrangling the jury has finally retired to consider its verdict in the trial of two brothers accused of assaulting police officers at Manchester Airport.

The allegations arise from a widely publicised incident at the airport on Tuesday, 23rd July 2024.

Mohammed Fahir Amaaz, 20, and Muhammad Amaad, 26, of Tarnside Close, Rochdale, both deny the allegations against them, which are as follows:

• Amaaz:
• Two assaults occasioning actual bodily harm of PCs Zachary Marsden and Lydia Ward;
• Assault by beating of PC Ellie Cook, a constable who was acting in exercise of functions as an emergency worker;
• Assault by beating of Abdulkareem Hamzah Abbas Ismaeil.
• Amaad:
• Assault occasioning actual bodily harm of PC Zachary Marsden.

The maximum sentence for the most serious of these offences, assault occasioning actual bodily harm, is 5 years' custody.

The brothers do not dispute their presence or involvement in each of these allegations, but instead rely on the defence of self-defence.

Amaaz has told the jury that Mr Ismaeil became threatening and aggressive when he was asked to account for his behaviour during an inbound flight. Shameem Achtar, mother of Amaaz and Amaad, had travelled on the same flight, during which she said Mr Ismaeil had made abusive comments towards her.

Amaaz also said that he feared "being battered to death" by the three police officers - PCs Zachary Marsden, Lydia Ward and Ellie Cook - who later turned up to arrest him in relation to the incident with Mr Ismaeil.

Amaad has told the jury that he acted in defence of his brother, when the officers used what he perceived to be excessive force to effect their arrest of Amaaz.

Over the coming hours and days it will be the job of the jury to sort the wheat from the chaff. In my view there has been a heck of a lot of chaff, so it might take the jury a little while.

Hopefully we won't need to wait too long for a decision.

Update (30/7/25): The Manchester Airport police assault verdicts are now in.