A former police officer who led the first response in the wake of the Manchester Arena attack could be facing criminal charges.
Police watchdog, the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC), has today revealed that it will be referring a file of evidence to the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) on accounts of the night of the atrocity on on 22 May 2017 as provided by former Greater Manchester Police (GMP) officer, Dale Sexton.
Mr Sexton has now retired from the force, but was the Chief Inspector and force duty officer in the city centre on the night of the attack, and led the initial police response.
22 people tragically lost their lives, and thousands more were left injured and affected, during a bombing at the end of an Ariana Grande concert at Manchester Arena.
The IOPC had already previously investigated a complaint lodged on behalf of the victims’ families in relation comments provided as evidence by Mr Sexton, where the now-retired officer denied he was “overwhelmed” with the situation and claimed GMP made “a deliberate decision” not to inform other emergency services that the force had declared ‘Operation Plato’ – which was an agreed national identifier to a no-notice marauding terrorist firearms attack.
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Floral tributes left after the Manchester Arena attack / Credit: David Dixon (via Geograph)
However, when interviewed back in 2018 as part of the Kerslake Report, Mr Sexton neglected to mention going against protocol and keeping the declaration secret from partner services.
When Mr Sexton was later challenged by the independent inquiry into the emergency response – which was commissioned by Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham – as to why he had not admitted to going against the protocol earlier, he said he felt like he had “almost got away with it on the night”.
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When the investigation finally concluded earlier this year back in February, Mr Sexton was cleared by the IOPC of breaching standards of professional behaviour or committing a criminal offence.
But now, after the IOPC has “subsequently completed and upheld” a Victims’ Right to Review (VRR) – which it says was requested by the families of the victims – a second decision maker, who has no connection to the original investigation, reviewed the “substantial amount of evidence” gathered during the IOPC investigation and determined “an offence may have been committed”.
“We will now begin preparing a file of evidence for the CPS to consider any possible charges,” the IOPC confirmed in its statement this morning.
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Addressing the situation, Amanda Rowe – who is the Director of Operations at the IOPC – commented: “The Manchester Arena bombing was a tragedy that had a profound impact right across Greater Manchester and beyond, [and] it will live long in the memories for all the wrong reasons and our thoughts remain with all those affected by this horrific act of violence.
“This was a complex investigation, carried out independently of police, and investigators obtained a significant amount of information, which was considered as part of our decision-making.
Police car at night in Manchester city centre / Credit: GMP
“In cases like this, and in line with other organisations, victims and complainants have a right to have their case reviewed by someone unconnected to the original investigation [and] in this instance, we determined the matter requires further exploration and will be submitted to the CPS to consider in due course.
“A referral to the CPS does not necessarily mean that criminal charges will be authorised.
“It will now be for prosecutors to determine whether charges should follow and, if so, what those charges may be.”
Featured Image – GMP
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Six teenage boys arrested following stabbing of 13-year-old in Rochdale town centre
Emily Sergeant
Six teenage boys have been arrested following the stabbing of a 13-year-old in Rochdale town centre over the weekend.
Greater Manchester Police (GMP) explained that officers were called out to reports of a ‘serious assault’ near the Riverside Shopping Centre in central Rochdale on Saturday (29 August), and when they arrived on the scene, they found that a 13-year-old boy had been stabbed.
The young boy currently remains in hospital receiving treatment, while a police investigation into the incident is open and ongoing.
Two teenage boys were first arrested on suspicion of assault and possession of a bladed article on the same day the incident occurred (29 August), but have since been released on bail.
Officers then made four further arrests yesterday (31 August), again all teenage boys who were arrested on suspicion of assault and possession of a bladed article, with enquires ongoing.
A Section 60 and 60AA ‘stop and search’ authority was introduced in Rochdale town centre following the recent incidents in area and following reports of youths carrying weapons in the locality, and this has now been extended to 3pm today (Tuesday 1 September).
“This was a serious and sustained attack that could have had far more tragic consequences,” explained Detective Superintendent, Richard Hunt .”Our team of experienced detectives is working around the clock to understand exactly what happened, identify all those involved, and secure the strongest possible evidence.
“We will relentlessly pursue every lead available to us and will leave no stone unturned in bringing all those responsible before the courts.
“Community safety remains our absolute priority, and we are committed to ensuring those who seek to bring violence onto our streets are held fully accountable for their actions.”
Can you help? Anyone who witnessed the incident, was in the town centre at the time, or has any mobile phone, CCTV, or dashcam footage, is urged to come forward and speak to police on 101, quoting log 2750 of 29/08/2026, or using the LiveChat function on the GMP website.
Alternatively, you can contact Crimestoppers, anonymously, on 0800 555 111.
Featured Image – GMP
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High School Musical at Lowry, Salford – a night spent reliving our childhood | Review
Amy Williams
What a night spent reliving our childhood.
Now, I don’t want to exaggerate or seem biased, considering this is one of my favourite film trilogies of all time, but this could be the best stage show I’ve seen in a long while.
We all know how High School Musical goes, right? Set at East High, we follow Troy and Gabriella (the star basketball player, and the geeky new girl) who meet over New Year, and then become ‘star-crossed lovers’ when back at school as they’re part of two different ‘cliques’.
The duo mess with the ‘Status Quo’ when they audition for the school musical. But will they stick to what they know? Or become stars of the stage? I’m sure you know the ending.
High School Musical is currently on stage at Lowry, Salford / Credit: Matt Crockett (Supplied)
From the costumes and the characters, to the memorable songs (there’s actually 52 songs in this production, including a mega mix at the end), they’ve kept right to the script of the films – and that’s exactly what we wanted to see.
Of course, the biggest throwback of them all is Kaycee Stroh – who originally featured as Martha Cox in the film trilogy – taking the role as Ms Darbus, and she was just as incredible as we expected her to be. And to see her do the iconic dance in the finale was unbelievable, 13-year-old Amy was screaming.
Also featuring Jason Donovan as Coach Bolton, Tobias Turley as Troy, Leonor Correia as Gabriella, Caitlin Tipping Sharpay, and Luke Bayer as Ryan, it was a proper impressive cast all round.
It’s a night to properly relive your mid-00s childhood / Credit: Matt Crockett (Supplied)
There was crowd interaction right from the off, as they taught the crowd a cheerleading routine to be included later in the show, plus for the finale, they had the lyrics on the big screen too so everyone could sing-along.
If we could go and see this show every single night, we would – it is absolutely brilliant.
Emily Sergeant -
6th July 2023 
