“Unacceptable!” Foreigner, described as Irish, attacks police and staff at Lisbon Airport

A visibly angry young man, described as Irish, has spent the night in PSP holding cells at Lisbon airport after violently attacking a member of staff and two police officers.

The offences can not easily be described as ‘alleged’, as they have been caught on film, and shared widely.

The tall individual can be seen kicking a member of the airport ground-handling company Menzies forcefully in the chest, and later kicking and beating a member of the PSP police force.

It is still a mystery as to what provoked these attacks. A motive may come out in court later today, when the 26-year-old will be brought before a judge for initial questioning.

But the incident has already brought condemnation from the Ministry of Interior Administration, which has said the Irishman deserves the state’s ‘firm repudiation’ (whatever that actually suggests in terms of penalty).

PSP union president Bruno Pereira has told SIC Notícias that there has been an increase in violence directed towards police generally, throughout Europe, making the profession “increasingly difficult” and “risky”.

Pereira said that both policemen injured in the violence were treated and discharged from hospital – one will remain off work while his injuries heal. But the worst of this incident is the fact that it is not ‘isolated’: “The images are deeply disturbing, but they are not unprecedented (…) we see similar cases every day (…) it has become increasingly difficult to be a police officer, and these images show that all too clearly,” Pereira told SIC.

Answering press queries about the attacks, minister for interior administration Luís Neves said that two security guards at the airport had also been targeted by the young man, whose presence there has not been fully explained.

In the images, he does not appear to be carrying any luggage. Was he there to meet someone flying in, or accompany someone who was flying out? Or was he there for some other purpose?

All these questions may be answered after the individual appears in court.

Source: SIC Notícias

Natasha Donn

Journalist for the Portugal Resident.