Police officer assaulted and burned with cigarette whilst breaking up gathering in Bolton

Greater Manchester Police officers were assaulted after attempting to break up an illegal gathering in Bolton this week.

Officers visited an address on Wigan Road on Monday (February 22) afternoon and found ‘a large number of people from various households’ in attendance.

The Bolton News have reported that 10 police cars were spotted in the area.

As police attempted to disperse the crowd and issue fines, the situation turned hostile and led to two officers being assaulted.

One was ‘grabbed and dragged to the ground’, whilst his colleague was burned with a cigarette whilst attempting to come to the officer’s aid.

A 60-year-old man was arrested on suspicion of two counts of assault of an emergency worker.

The individual has now been released under investigation.

13 fines were also distributed to those in attendance and a closure notice was issued for the premises.

Chief Inspector Stuart Maley-Jones, of GMP’s Bolton division said the whole incident was “shocking”.

“This behaviour is completely unacceptable,” he stated.

“Our officers are doing their very best to maintain public safety in the midst of a pandemic and should not have to be fearful of assault whilst carrying out their duties.

“I would like to remind the public of the importance of adhering to the regulations. We can now see a light at the end of the tunnel, but to reach that light we must do everything we can to reduce the number of virus transmissions and help keep our community safe and protected.”