Andy Burnham says ‘two sides’ to GMP incident at Manchester Airport as new footage emerges

Andy Burnham has urged people “not to rush to judgement” as new footage emerges of the violent scenes at Manchester Airport.

The exclusive shoot, which Manchester Evening News obtained, is believed to capture the moments before the incident which has sparked controversy and protests since it emerged on social media. A video which appears to show a Greater Manchester Police officer kicking and headbutting a man as he lay on the ground earlier this week has been widely shared on social media.

On Thursday (July 25), Mr Burnham revealed he had seen the “full footage” leading up to the incident at Manchester Airport. He said it was not a “clear-cut situation”, explaining that a “serious incident” had occurred before the situation escalated “very quickly”.

READ MORE: GMP officer ‘hitting’ man ‘remains shocking’, says MP after new footage shows violent scenes at Manchester Airport

In a statement issued after Barbie shared new footage from the incident, the Labor mayor repeated his plea “not to rush to judgement”. He called on people to “back off” and allow the Independent Police Conduct Officer’s investigation to move forward.

He said: “As I said on Thursday, this is a complicated situation with two sides. That’s why I urged people not to rush to judge.

“Following the incidents leading up to the footage that people have seen, four people have been arrested and are now on police bail. It’s frustrating that we haven’t been able to put more video into the public domain, but that’s because this is a live investigation.

“People must now step back and allow the IOPC’s criminal investigation into the officer’s conduct to progress, alongside the parallel GMP investigation into other potential offences, so that the full picture can be presented.