Armed policeman caught on CCTV kicking suspect at Manchester Airport tells jury his only other option was to use his Glock semi-automatic pistol

By JAMES TOZER, NORTHERN CORRESPONDENT Published: 18:09, 21 April 2026 | Updated: 18:09, 21 April 2026 An armed police officer caught on CCTV kicking a prone man in the face at Manchester Airport has told a jury his only other option was to use his semi-automatic pistol. PC Zachary Marsden said he chose to ‘strike’ Mohammed Fahir Amaaz with his boot in order to bring him under control, rather than his Glock 17, as the suspect could have ended up being killed. The officer had just been repeatedly punched about the head by Muhammad Amaad, 26, before Amaaz – his younger brother - grabbed him from behind and began to attack him, a court has heard. Seconds later Amaaz fell to the floor after being Tasered by one of two female officers who a jury have been told he was convicted of assaulting at a trial last year. Cameras then captured PC Marsden kicking him in the face before delivering a stamp. The violence broke out when the officers attempted to detain Amaaz at a car park pay station in July 2024. He had been identified as having headbutted a passenger at a Starbucks café within the arrivals area just minutes before, Liverpool Crown Court has heard. During the resulting confrontation, Amaaz punched and elbowed PC Ellie Cook, who was also armed, and PC Lydia Ward, who was unarmed, breaking her nose, before grappling with PC Marsden. Firearms officer Zachary Marsden had no choice but to kick Mohammed Fahir Amaaz, 21, in the face during the fracas at Manchester Airport in July 2024, he told a jury (pictured on footage from a colleague's body-worn camera) PC Marsden said that when he stamped his boot towards Amaaz’s head he was trying to ‘pin’ the dangling wire of his police issue radio to the floor so he could use it to call for back-up  Continuing his evidence at the brothers’ trial for assaulting him, the officer today told a jury that he was initially unaware that Amaaz had been Tasered by PC Cook. Fearing Amaaz was getting off the floor to attack him again, he said he could not use his own 50,000 volt Taser as the barbs were still connected to Amaad's chest. PC Marsden said his irritant spray would not have stopped Amaaz in time, while he was too close for his extendable baton to be effective. He said using his pistol was ‘not a suitable option’ either as there was a ‘potential risk of fatal injuries’. Asked by prosecutor Paul Greaney KC what he ended up doing, PC Marsden said he used his right foot to ‘strike’ Amaaz’s ‘facial region’. ‘In other words you kicked him in the face?’ Mr Greaney asked. Asked why, the officer said it would have ‘stunned’ Amaaz, ’buying me precious time’ so he could ‘move in and take control’. Mohammed Fahir Amaaz, 21 (left), and 26-year-old Muhammad Amaad pictured last year  PCs Ellie Cook (top) and Lydia Ward (centre) had been trying to help armed colleague PC Zachary Marsden (in glasses) arrest Mohammed Fahir Amaaz (right) when his brother Muhammad Amaad (left) approached from behind As PC Marsden attempted to gain control of Amaaz in order to arrest him, he said he felt an 'immense pressure' from behind – coming from his brother Amaad (pictured right grappling with the armed officer in CCTV footage) Quizzed as to whether he felt he had any other option, the policeman replied: ‘No.’ And he denied being driven by ‘anger’, ‘retribution’ or ‘revenge’ at having been punched by Amaaz moments earlier. Footage then shows PC Marsden stamping his boot towards Amaaz’s head. Saying it did not make contact, the officer said he was trying to ‘pin’ the dangling wire of his police issue radio to the floor so he could use it to call for back-up. Asked by Mr Greaney whether his intention was to stamp on Amaaz’s head, he replied: ‘No it was not.’ He said Amaaz ‘curled up’ in response to the kick, but he was unable to handcuff him as the suspect’s mother was lying on top of him. PC Marsden said he used the hand in which he was still holding his Taser in an attempt to ‘push’ her out of the way. At that point colleague PC Cook shouted to let him know she had already Tasered Amaaz. Mohammed Fahir Amaaz denies assault causing actual bodily harm PC Marsden said he was ‘repeatedly screaming into the radio’ to ‘get some help here now’. The officer – who has told jurors he is short-sighted - said he was still struggling to see as his glasses had been knocked off when Amaaz’s heavily built older brother Amaad repeatedly punched him about the head. At that point he became aware of Amaad getting back to his feet and ‘shouted to him’ to get onto the floor. But he said Amaad only went to his knees, at which the officer said he delivered a kick to his thigh. Officers who were by now arriving as back-up helped him restrain Amaad. PC Marsden said they had ‘great difficulty’ in handcuffing Amaad due to his ‘size’ and ended up having to use two pairs of cuffs linked together. That night he was treated in hospital for bruises and jaw pain, with doctors later diagnosing post-concussion syndrome following repeated head trauma. Cross-examining him, Imran Khan KC, for Amaaz, said the defence case was that the constable failed to follow professional standards and used ‘unlawful force’. As a result, Amaaz had to defend himself and his brother, he suggested. Mr Khan put it to PC Marsden that the force he used that evening was not ‘necessary, reasonable and proportionate’. ‘I completely disagree,’ he replied. And PC Marsden denied falsely claiming that control room colleagues had told him Amaaz had 'run' off following the Starbucks incident.  Asked by Mr Khan why he didn't simply ask to speak to Amaaz instead of 'grabbing' him at the pay station, PC Marsden replied: ‘Based on my professional experiences, someone that’s committed a crime and wants to escape from the scene doesn’t want to talk to me.’  He insisted his intention had been to lead the suspect into a less crowded area and arrest him there.  And he denied Mr Khan's suggestion that failing to explicitly agree the plan in advance with his female colleagues had been 'a shocking dereliction of duty'.  Amaaz, now 21, and Amaad, 26, both from Rochdale, Greater Manchester, deny assaulting PC Marsden causing him actual bodily harm. The jury have been told that Amaaz was convicted last year of assaulting holidaymaker Abdulkareem Ismaeil in the Starbucks cafe and also assaulting PC Cook and PC Ward, who suffered a broken nose. 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