Heywood man says GMP ‘still covering up’ five years after violent incident

A Heywood man has accused Greater Manchester Police of continuing to cover up misconduct by its officers, five years after he was assaulted and threatened in his home.

Stephen Taylor, 50, says he remains traumatised and without closure over the force’s handling of the case, and alleges that officers deliberately deleted evidence, misused his personal data and attempted to discredit him with prosecutors and his GP.

The incident occurred on 23 January 2021, when Mr Taylor reported being violently attacked in his home and receiving threats to his life. He has since pursued an extensive campaign for accountability, including raising questions at Mayor’s Question Time and making multiple formal complaints to GMP, the Information Commissioner’s Office and other public bodies.

GMP has now issued a formal apology and paid Mr Taylor £5,000 in compensation. However, it insists that no misconduct was found and no officers will face disciplinary action.

In a full statement to Roch Valley Radio, a GMP spokesperson said:

We have apologised to Mr Taylor and accepted that the service he received in the investigation into a reported assault and threats made, the referral made to his GP, and the initial handling of his complaint, was poor.

Following further contact from Mr Taylor, a review was carried out by GMP’s Professional Standards Directorate. This review found that the service provided was unacceptable on many counts, but did not meet the threshold for misconduct.

Assistant Chief Constable John Webster met Mr Taylor in person in October 2025 to further discuss the review’s findings.

All of Mr Taylor’s complaints have now been finalised.

We would hope that should Mr Taylor come into contact with the GMP of today, the service he would receive would be of noticeable improvement.

But Mr Taylor disputes that the matter is closed. In emails and documents seen by Roch Valley Radio, he accuses the force of “catastrophic failures” over a sustained period, and says a further subject access request in January 2026 uncovered more evidence of deliberate deletions.

He claims body-worn video footage from officers attending the original incident has gone missing or was erased, and that repeated requests for it to be recovered have been ignored. He also alleges that personal records were altered to include false claims, including racist behaviour and historic criminal allegations, which were later quietly removed after complaints to the ICO.

In one example, Mr Taylor says officers sent incorrect information to his GP listing alleged criminal behaviour that never occurred. GMP later confirmed in writing that some of the records were in fact crimes where Mr Taylor had been the victim.

Despite a review by GMP’s Professional Standards Directorate, Mr Taylor claims serious elements of the case remain unaddressed, including:

• Threats and harassment directed at his late neighbour, an 87-year-old blind woman
• Threats made against staff at Reside Estate Agents in Rochdale
• Criminal damage to two vehicles, allegedly linked to the original incident
• A failure to collect CCTV evidence after Mr Taylor reported being chased from a public house in Manchester
• Accusations of perjury, perverting the course of justice, and data misuse by officers involved

In formal correspondence, he has publicly named officers he believes are responsible for misconduct or cover-up. These include:

• PC Christopher Amis (Middleton/Rochdale)
• DI Darren Callaghan (Rochdale)
• DI Graham Cooke (Rochdale)
• DS Julianna Barker (Rochdale)
• PC Lee Bracey (Middleton)
• PC Douglas (Middleton)
• DS Mark Radford (Professional Standards Directorate)
• DS Stephen Keeley (Professional Standards Directorate)

Mr Taylor has called for a full disciplinary review, stating:

GMP have been shown again and again to have lied, misled and covered up wrongdoing. I am still being denied justice. These officers are not fit to wear the King’s cloth.

He has also criticised the Greater Manchester Combined Authority and Deputy Mayor Kate Green, alleging that the case was shut down prematurely despite assurances it would be investigated fully. He maintains that many senior officers are now avoiding accountability.

GMP said the outcome of its review did not meet the misconduct threshold, but confirmed it accepted failings in service and complaint handling.

Mr Taylor says he remains committed to pursuing justice and will continue raising the matter publicly until, in his words, “those responsible are held to account”.