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Two brothers used 'high level of violence' to assault police officers at Manchester Airport, court hears

Two brothers used 'high level of violence' to assault police officers at Manchester Airport, court hears

Daily Mail​21 hours ago
Two brothers used a 'high level of violence' during an assault on police officers at Manchester Airport, a court has heard.
Mohammed Fahir Amaaz, 20, and Muhammad Amaad, 26, are alleged to have struck out at police in the Terminal 2 building on July 23 last year.
It followed an earlier incident at a Starbucks cafe when Amaaz is said to have headbutted a member of a public and punched him, Liverpool Crown Court heard.
Opening the prosecution case on Friday, Paul Greaney KC said the officers who were already in the airport later traced them at the terminal's car park payment area.
Three officers, PC Zachary Marsden and PC Ellie Cook - both armed - and PC Lydia Ward, unarmed, approached the defendants, he said.
Mr Greaney went on: 'The officers attempted to move Mohammed Fahir Amaaz away from a payment machine in order to arrest him, but he resisted, and his brother Muhammad Amaad intervened.
'Both defendants assaulted PC Marsden.
'In the moments that followed, the first defendant also assaulted PC Cook and then PC Ward too, breaking her nose.
'The defendants used a high level of violence.'
Amaaz is alleged to have assaulted PC Marsden and PC Ward, causing them actual bodily harm.
He is also accused of the assault of PC Cook and the earlier assault of Abdulkareem Ismaeil at Starbucks.
Amaad, 26, is alleged to have assaulted Pc Marsden, causing actual bodily harm.
Both men, from Rochdale, Greater Manchester, deny the allegations.
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EXCLUSIVE My mum wrote a letter in defence of a family friend she thought had been wrongly accused of sexual abuse - little did she know, he regularly raped me from the age of three
EXCLUSIVE My mum wrote a letter in defence of a family friend she thought had been wrongly accused of sexual abuse - little did she know, he regularly raped me from the age of three

Daily Mail​

time9 minutes ago

  • Daily Mail​

EXCLUSIVE My mum wrote a letter in defence of a family friend she thought had been wrongly accused of sexual abuse - little did she know, he regularly raped me from the age of three

A woman has bravely spoken out about the sexual abuse she suffered at the hands of her childminder's son - and told how her own mother came unknowingly to write a letter in his defence. Rachael Smith, 23, from Hertfordshire, was preyed upon at the tender age of three by evil predator, Steven Freitas, 34, who raped and sexually assaulted her for three years. Until the age of six, Freitas raped Rachael in his family home when she went to stay with her childminder, threatening to do it to her younger sister, Katie, if she told anyone. Unbeknownst to Rachael, when she was six, Freitas was arrested and convicted of sexually abusing two other girls under 13. In a shocking twist, not knowing of the abuse her own daughter had faced, Rachael's own mother, Steph, 43, wrote a character witness in Freitas' favour, declaring that he'd 'never do something like that' and said she believed the victims' claims were 'untrue'. It wasn't until over a decade later that Rachael discovered the statement and told her mother about the traumatic abuse she'd faced as a child year earlier, leaving her horrified. Rachael has bravely waived her right to anonymity to encourage other survivors to speak out against their abusers. The recovery worker said: 'For so long I kept this terrible secret. When I found Mum's statement I felt sick to my stomach he'd had other victims. 'Steven had managed to manipulate my own mother into thinking he was innocent. When she found out about what he'd done to me, she was beside herself with guilt. 'I'm just glad he's finally behind bars where he belongs.' In June this year, Freitas was jailed for five years for rape and sexual assault by penetration. Rachael was just four months old when she started being cared for by her childminder, Freitas's mother, who was a close family friend, and said she 'loved' going to her house. Rachael remembers: 'I saw Steven's mother like a second mum. I loved going to her house and playing with the other children.' However, everything changed when Rachael turned three. One day, in 2004, Freitas, then aged 11, coaxed her into the downstairs toilet, in the guise of taking her for a wee. She says: 'While inside, he took off my underwear and started touching my privates. He told me it was "our secret". 'I was only young so thought it was normal and agreed.' The abuse escalated and Freitas began making Rachael sit on his lap, naked, and making her touch him too. Just months later, he raped her for the first time. She recalled: 'I just remember how painful it felt. I wanted to get it over and done with and go back to playing.' Most weeks, while she was being looked after, Freitas took her into the toilet multiple times to abuse her, which also included oral rape. Afterwards, he would offer to plait her hair or play games with her. 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Over the following years, Rachael blocked out the abuse but when she learned about sex education at school at the age of 10, the memories all came back. At school, aged ten, she learnt about sex education. She says: 'Everything came flooding back and I realised what had happened was wrong. 'I asked my teacher questions like, "how long does sperm live inside you?" and "can kids get pregnant?". I was terrified. 'They should've picked up on those signs, as they're not normal questions for kids to ask.' Afterwards, Rachael developed OCD and Tourettes syndrome - a condition that causes people to make sudden, repetitive sounds or movements. She'd have rituals where she'd wash her hands multiple times and talk to her teddies, telling them 'don't kill my family'. She says: 'I had such intrusive and violent thoughts. I hated my body and felt ashamed and embarrassed. 'I began having nightmares and panic attacks.' 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When she confessed what had happened, she said the police were 'so supportive' and the detective in charge believed her 'straightaway'. Two weeks later, she told her mother the truth of what happened via text message. Rachael said: 'She felt so guilty she'd defended him, unknowingly. Was horrified at how monstrous he actually was.' At his trial this month, Rachael bravely gave her evidence, and was horrified when the defence 'asked her what she had been wearing' when she was just three years old. This time, Rachael's mother Steph was called to the stand to give evidence for the prosecution. Steph, 43, said: 'Steven's mother was a registered childminder and good friend of my family. 'She lived opposite my parents. I always thought Steven was immature for his age and behind developmentally and socially. But I had no idea the monstrousness he was capable of. 'When Steven was arrested for the first abuse case, I didn't think the allegations were true. 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I want to let other survivors know, it's never their fault and they should never feel ashamed. 'I'm finally spoken my truth and no longer feel and guilt or shame.'

Three men in early 20s arrested after woman sexually assaulted in park as cops step up patrols
Three men in early 20s arrested after woman sexually assaulted in park as cops step up patrols

The Sun

time24 minutes ago

  • The Sun

Three men in early 20s arrested after woman sexually assaulted in park as cops step up patrols

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My customer's neighbours REFUSED to cut down their hedge... so here's what I did next
My customer's neighbours REFUSED to cut down their hedge... so here's what I did next

Daily Mail​

timean hour ago

  • Daily Mail​

My customer's neighbours REFUSED to cut down their hedge... so here's what I did next

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