A police officer has been suspended after a video circulated online of a man being kicked and stamped on the head at Manchester Airport.
An officer had been removed from all duties after a “thorough review of further information” of the incident, which took place on Tuesday, Greater Manchester Police confirmed.
The footage showed a uniformed male officer holding a Taser over the man who was lying on the ground at Terminal 2 before kicking him twice.
Mayor of Greater Manchester Andy Burnham, who has met the home secretary over the incident, has appealed for calm.
After the meeting, Yvette Cooper said she understood “the widespread distress” the footage had caused, adding she had spoken to police about the “urgent steps” they are taking.
She said it was “essential” police had the trust of communities, and the public “rightly expect high standards from those in charge of keeping us safe”.
Greater Manchester Police (GMP) said it understood the “deep concerns” that had been “widely raised”.
The footage sparked a protest outside Rochdale police station on Wednesday night, with hundreds of people gathered, and chants of “shame on you” heard.
In the build-up to the incident shown in the clip, a police spokesman said that firearms officers had been punched to the ground after trying to make an arrest following a fight in the airport.
There was a “clear risk” their weapons could be taken from them, the police spokesman said, adding all three had been taken to hospital, one with a broken nose.
Four men were later arrested on suspicion of assault and affray, and all have since been bailed.
It remains unclear what led to the incident, but Mr Burnham said he thought there had been “an issue on a flight coming into Manchester”.
“When the flight landed, two individuals were waiting for their mum, who said there had been an issue,” he said.
“She pointed somebody out and there was an altercation in the arrivals hall.”
He said those involved had been “followed by camera through the airport and then we get to the scene that people have seen in the car park area”.
Mr Burnham told BBC Radio Manchester he had seen “the full footage” that showed a “fast-moving and complicated situation in a challenging location – it’s not clear cut”.
“Time has been taken to get a clearer picture of what has happened,” he said, adding that an investigation needed to proceed now “in a thorough and measured way”.
Many of those who spoke to the BBC in Rochdale about the video asked to remain anonymous.
One woman said: “If I were to kick a person in the face, I would be arrested and sentenced, not have the charges dropped and a policeman should be treated the same.”
Meanwhile, a man in the town said: “The police reaction was wrong but I don’t know what the context is.
“We need to see the full picture. But when you’re kicking a man who can’t defend himself – it’s exceeding the need for force.”
