A grandmother has been left with a black eye after allegedly being punched to the ground by a police officer.
A Greater Manchester officer appeared to hit Colleen Murphy, 50, during an incident captured in footage that has now gone viral on social media.
Greater Manchester Police said it is reviewing the incident after being called to a “disturbance” on Union Street at around 9pm on Saturday evening.
In the two-minute clip, police can be seen batting people away near a Sainsbury’s store as they pin a man to the ground.
An officer can then be heard demanding the man “stand up” before dragging him on his back across the car park by his hands.
A woman in a long grey cardigan can be seen walking over and the police officer stands up and takes a swing at her head before she falls backwards.
Murphy’s daughter Danielle Willisford said a row had erupted as her mother and cousin were “barred” from entering a Sainsbury’s branch while Willisford and her brother were inside the store.
Willisford said that when police arrived on the scene, they told her brother he had also been barred from the store too, despite having just shopped inside it.
She claimed one of the officers then began shouting at him, before “he grabbed him and flung him on to the floor”.
Willisford claimed the officer began hitting her brother and so her mum, who was “under the influence of alcohol, walked over to him to tell him to stop ‘hurting my son'”.
She said her mum was left with a “massive lump on her head and bruise on the side of her face” after the officer knocked her to the ground.
Greater Manchester Police said the incident has now been referred to its Professional Standards Department, adding that the team will look at the body-worn video and social media clip of the events.
In a statement, a police spokesperson said a 31-year-old male was arrested for being drunk and disorderly.
“Greater Manchester Police are aware of a video circulating online which shows an altercation between officers and a member of the public whilst a man is being arrested,” they said.
“At the time of his arrest a crowd had gathered, and footage of the incident has been uploaded on to social media.
“The footage shows an altercation with members of the public attempting to intervene, while officers placed the man under arrest.
“The man received a fixed penalty notice for being drunk and disorderly. There were no injuries reported.”
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