Manchester cafe owner says police tried to recruit him to spy on Palestine Action | Palestine Action
A cafe owner claimed police offered him financial assistance and would “turn a blind eye” to some low-level crimes if he provided information about Palestine Action.
Shams (alias) Sadiq, who owns two cafes in Manchester, said the incentives were offered when he went to collect electronic devices seized by police during his arrest last year in connection with alleged crimes linked to the banned direct action group.
Sadiq, 51, from Didsbury, said that when he went to Ashton-under-Lyne police station on May 15, two officers he believed to be from Operation Wildflower, the response of Greater Manchester police (GMP) and others to the war in Gaza, wanted to speak to him “man to man”.
Sadiq said officers told him they knew he was “fully involved” in Palestine Action after checking his devices, but that they would not charge him over last year’s arrest.
“They told me: ‘We need your help. Look, there are benefits to helping us,'” he told the Guardian. “I’m thinking: ‘What kind of benefits? Financial benefits? Are you going to pay my taxes?’ They said, ‘Oh, we can help with this kind of thing.’
“The other guy said to me: ‘Oh, there are other benefits too.’ “They said, ‘We’re not saying you can go out and commit a serious crime, but we can ignore some things.'”
Sadiq said he then asked if they could avoid speeding tickets, to which they replied: “We don’t care about speeding.”
He interpreted “help” to mean “related to his research” [into Palestine Action] because they said I was involved and maybe I could be an informant. “They also told me that I was quite respected in my own community, so maybe they thought I could help them find Muslim extremists in the mosque.”
Sadiq, who is under investigation for an alleged offense related to Palestine Action in 2024, said he was questioned at Manchester airport under Schedule 7 of the Terrorism Act after returning from holiday in Morocco, four days before the bid, but was not arrested.
He said two officers at the airport questioned him about Palestine Action, Iran and his finances, including his mortgage. He said he was detained for more than three hours, during which he was asked what he would do if someone with him at the mosque held extremist views. Again, his electronic devices were taken away.
He said the same two officers told him to meet him three days later at the Starbucks in Terminal 2, where “they were really nice, apologized, said ‘I’m sorry you had to put up with this’ and returned the devices they had bought at the airport.”
Sadiq has been vocal about Palestine, going on marches and printing leaflets and stickers for pro-Palestinian groups and cultural exhibitions. Last year the Manchester Evening News reported that miniature Israeli flags were pasted on the door of one of its cafes in recognition of its support for Palestine.
Speaking at Ashton-under-Lyne police station, he said officers also told him they would protect him and his family. They said they didn’t need an urgent decision and gave him a number to text.
He said that since he did not accept the offer, he decided to go public to ensure his safety. He added that neighbors stopped talking to him after his arrest last year. “More than anything, I feel like I need protection from the police. It’s scary to have this mark on my passport because I didn’t do anything. If it has something to do with me, then blame me.”
Simon Pook, a lawyer for Robert Lizar, said he had made formal representations to GMP on Sadiq’s behalf and said the force’s behavior was reminiscent of that of the British state during the Northern Ireland Troubles.
“We are unhappy that he was put in this situation and offered incentives to work for the state,” Pook said. “Was the intention always to use plan 7? [stop] To offer incentive? “If this was the true intention, schedule 7 was used unlawfully because it should be used in situations where you believe someone is involved in or preparing for terrorism.”
GMP said it could not comment.
