Man dies following contact with police - Greater Manchester Police, February 2018

At 9.25am on 12 February 2018 a police community support officer (PCSO) from Greater Manchester Police spoke to a man in connection with an allegation of shoplifting. At approximately 3.30pm, the man saw two other PCSOs walking towards him and quickly walked away from them. He jumped over a railing and attempted to cross a road, at which point he was struck by a motor vehicle and died.

Our investigators attended the scene and a post-incident process. They took witness statements from police officers and members of the public. Our investigators also collected CCTV footage, police officers’ body-worn camera footage, and vehicle-mounted camera footage. A forensic collision reconstruction report was completed and reviewed.

Evidence indicated that the PCSOs were a significant distance away and were not pursuing the man when he was struck by the motor vehicle. The actions of the PCSOs could not reasonably be said to have contributed to or caused the man’s death. They could not have foreseen that their minimal ‘contact’ – being seen by the man, shouting his name and saying they wanted to talk to him – would have resulted in his death.

Based on the evidence available we found no indication that any person serving with the police may have behaved in a manner that would justify the bringing of disciplinary proceedings, or had committed a criminal offence. We completed our investigation in July 2018.

An inquest later ruled that the death of the man was an accident.