A man’s alleged headbutt incident and subsequent confrontation with police at a bustling airport were captured on CCTV footage presented to a jury. Mohammed Fahir Amaaz, 21, and Muhammad Amaad, 26, hailing from Rochdale, Greater Manchester, had gone to Manchester Airport on July 23, 2024, to collect their mother but found themselves in a scuffle after the younger brother reportedly headbutted a man at a Starbucks nearby.
The CCTV footage displayed to jurors at Liverpool Crown Court depicted the moment of the alleged headbutt by Amaaz, who is then accused of assaulting a police officer at a car park pay station following the altercation at the coffee shop.
The incident unfolded after the brothers’ mother had a disagreement with a man on a flight back to the UK, as reported by the Manchester Evening News. She arrived at the airport from Pakistan via Qatar, and her younger son allegedly headbutted Abdulkareem Ismaeil, whom he had previously been convicted of assaulting.
During the trial’s second day, jurors were guided through a sequence of events with still images from the CCTV footage. Prosecutors described how Amaaz purportedly headbutted Mr. Ismaeil and then punched him before being separated by Amaad and their mother.
Witness Cameron Cartledge, the duty manager at Starbucks at the time, testified that he heard raised voices coming from the cafe where he witnessed the argument involving the three adults, including the headbutt incident. He described Amaaz as the aggressor based on his body language and tone of voice but was unsure about the argument’s subject.
Cartledge mentioned that shortly after the headbutt, Amaaz attempted to throw punches at Mr. Ismaeil, but he did not see any violence from the latter. He called the police immediately after witnessing the altercation, leading to officers arriving promptly at the scene, although the accused family had already left.
The court proceedings revealed that Amaaz assaulted three officers at terminal two after leaving Starbucks, leading to convictions for assaulting Ismaeil in Starbucks and two female police officers. The trial involves accusations of assaulting armed officer PC Zachary Marsden, causing bodily harm, a charge that both Amaaz and Amaad deny.
The court informed that PC Ward suffered severe injuries and emotional distress post-assault. The trial is ongoing.