Man accused of assaulting police at Manchester Airport 'headbutted' a traveller, court hears

A man accused of assaulting police at Manchester Airport was "aggressive" and "headbutted" a traveller earlier, a witness has told a court.

The first incident took place at a Starbucks at terminal two of the airport and led to police being called, Liverpool Crown Court heard.

When officers arrived, they traced brothers Mohammed Fahir Amaaz, 20, and Muhammad Amaad, 26, who were leaving the airport after picking up their mother.

Police arrived to arrest the pair as they went to pay for parking. But the brothers are alleged to have assaulted three officers after using a "high level of violence" to resist arrest.

The jury has been shown CCTV of both incidents.

The siblings, from Rochdale in Greater Manchester, deny the allegations on 23 July last year and claim self-defence.

Traveller Abdulkareem Ismaeil and Amaaz's mother were on the same flight, on which "something happened" that upset her, the jury heard.

Later, while leaving the airport with his wife and three young children, he stopped at Starbucks, where the defendant's mother pointed him out to her sons.

The manager of the Starbucks, Cameron Cartledge, told the court he heard "raised voices" and went to the door, where he saw a man - identified as Amaaz - "quite close" to Mr Ismaeil and "shouting at him".

Mr Cartledge said the shouting was in a foreign language he did not understand.

"At the time of the arguing he was very close to him, like in his face," he said.

"Blue track-suit man seemed quite aggressive, obviously annoyed about something, I don't know what. Blue track-suit man was aggressively shouting.

"Because his body language, his tone of voice was quite aggressive."

Mr Cartledge continued: "There was arguing, I don't know what was being said, then blue track-suit man headbutted the man we see in the black.

"He got him in the face. It did not look like it hurt Mr Ismaeil much but it was forceful enough to make him stagger back into the counter."

Amaaz then threw two punches, Mr Cartledge said, adding that he thought they landed on Mr Ismaeil's shoulder. The two men were then split up, he added.

When asked why he called the police, the witness replied: "Well, he had just assaulted him."

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Amaaz denies one count of assault to Mr Ismaeil and three counts of assault occasioning actual bodily harm to three police officers: PC Zachary Marsden, PC Ellie Cook and PC Lydia Ward.

His brother, Amaad, denies one count of assault occasioning actual bodily harm to PC Marsden.

The trial continues.

(c) Sky News 2025: Man accused of assaulting police at Manchester Airport 'headbutted' a traveller, court hears