Mohammed Fahir Amaaz knocked PC Lydia Ward to the ground with a single punch so forceful it broke her nose. Then, as a short clip of the incident circulated online, she said he “played the victim” — claiming public sympathy while the full story remained hidden.
On Friday, the 21-year-old from Rochdale was sentenced to three and a half years in prison at Liverpool Crown Court for assaulting Ward, PC Ellie Cook and a Starbucks customer, Abdulkareem Ismaeil, at Manchester Airport’s Terminal 2 on 23 July 2024.
“Mohammed Fahir Amaaz jailed for three and a half years for punching two female police officers and a Starbucks customer at Manchester Airport.”
The attack began when Amaaz headbutted Ismaeil inside the cafe. Officers responded, but as they tried to arrest him, he unleashed what prosecutors described as a “high level of violence”. CCTV footage shown to the jury captured him throwing 10 punches, two elbow strikes and one kick at the three officers.
Ward, now promoted to sergeant, confronted Amaaz directly in court. “Take away that I am a police officer,” she said. “What do you see? I’ll tell you what you see. You see a female. A female who is 5ft2 and at the time of the incident I weighed no more than eight stone. You are a male and you chose to attack me without a second thought.”
Her voice trembling, she added: “What angers me is that afterwards, when only part of the footage was out in the public, you played the victim. You are not a victim. I am the one who was injured, not you. You had the whole world listening to you and you showed no remorse. Not one ounce.”
The initial mobile phone footage, which showed a young Asian man being kicked in the face by a male officer, sparked protests. But days later, a leaked CCTV clip revealed the preceding assault — including Amaaz punching both female officers to the ground.
PC Cook, who was a firearms officer at the airport, described being “traumatised” and said the attack had forced her to give up her role. “Everyone knew who we were,” her statement read. “I had to move out of my home, a home where I felt safe and secure. For what? For doing my job?”
Judge Neil Flewitt KC called the assaults “prolonged and unprovoked” and labelled Amaaz the “aggressor”. The court heard that Ward still suffers from the attack: “It replays in my mind constantly,” she said.
Amaaz’s brother, Muhammad Amaad, 26, was also charged with assaulting PC Zachary Marsden, but two juries failed to reach a verdict. The Crown Prosecution Service last month said it would not seek a third trial. Marsden — the male officer seen kicking Amaaz on the ground — faces an investigation by the Independent Office for Police Conduct.