Manchester airport attack trial: Final week round-up

Closing speeches heard in trial of Mohammed Fahir Amaaz & Muhammad Amaad over Manchester Airport clash. Final prosecution and defence cases presented to jury. The final speeches for the prosecution and the defence have been delivered, with the jury hearing Mr Greaney KC for the Crown, and Imran Khan KC and Ms Gardner for the defendants Mr Amaaz and Mr Amaad.

The case hinges on whether the brothers struck out in aggression or acted in lawful self-defence.

The prosecution argue that the video evidence, which has been dissected in detail and referred to throughout the trial, shows clear aggression. In his speech, Mr Greaney KC urged jurors to “please trust your eyes and ears”, referring additionally to testimony from neutral witnesses that described Amaaz as the aggressor in the Starbucks head-butt incident.

Addressing the version of events given by the defendants, the prosecution characterised Amaaz’s claim that he had not been aware he was striking women as “bare-faced lies”. The prosecution asked the jury to draw conclusions from this regarding the reliability and honesty of the entire account given by Amaaz, with Amaad being similarly accused of lying to protect his brother.

Read more: Manchester Airport Attack: 3 Guilty Verdicts, 2 Charges Unresolved

The KC for the Crown told the court that the no-comment police interviews leave the brothers lacking key supporting evidence for the claim that they felt threatened and were acting in self defence.

The prosecution summarised the altercation with armed police as a case of the officers simply doing their job and attempting a lawful arrest, and suggested that Amaad would have understood that his brother was being arrested for assault and, the prosecution claim, unlawfully intervening. Regarding anything that came later, including the kick to Amaaz’s head, jurors were urged to consider this as irrelevant to the case.

For the defence, Imran Khan KC said the injuries suffered by officers must be seen in context. He told jurors Amaaz was reacting to what he believed was a lethal threat to his brother’s life.

He argued that Amaaz had seen a Taser being drawn and genuinely believed it to be a firearm. “It was about getting rid of the threat he faced,” Mr Khan said. He acknowledged that PC Ward’s injuries were serious, but told jurors: “Yes, it’s horrible — but he’s trying to save his brother’s life.”