MISCONDUCT proceedings against an assistant chief constable over the fatal shooting of an unarmed man by police have begun.

Anthony Grainger died aged 36 after being by shot by Greater Manchester Police officers in a car park off Jackson Avenue in March 2012.

Warrington Guardian:

Steve Heywood, who retired from the force in October 2018, is alleged to have misled a public inquiry into the incident.

But GMP was accused of an ‘omnishambles’ over delays in gross misconduct proceedings being brought against Mr Heywood during his hearing today, Monday.

His barrister John Beggs called for the allegations to be stayed, claiming that the constabulary had breached regulations as a result of these delays.

Mr Beggs told the hearing: “There really is, to quote that rather unpleasant vernacular, an omnishambles going on.

“It's unfair to Mr Heywood, who gave exemplary service to the public, but it is also unfair to other participants and unfair to the public.”

Mr Heywood admits that a firearms log from the days leading up to the shooting was completed retrospectively, and that he did not initially tell the inquiry he had not filled it in on the date shown.

Warrington Guardian:

Gerry Boyle, representing GMP, claimed that these entries were made to ‘misrepresent’ the information available at the time and to ‘retrospectively justify’ his decision to authorise a firearms operation.

Both Mr Grainger and David Totton, a passenger in the stolen Audi the deceased was behind the wheel of, had been under investigation by the force for some weeks at the time of his death over their suspected involvement in a string of robberies on business premises.

The dad-of-two was killed by when a GMP firearms officer, referred to in court as Q9, opened fire with his Heckler & Koch MP5 submachine gun.

During 15 weeks of evidence in 2017, Q9 told Liverpool Crown Court that he believed that the deceased ‘had reached down as if to grab a firearm’.

But no such weapons were found in the stationary vehicle.

A panel will hear more legal submissions when the hearing resumes tomorrow morning, Tuesday.