This article is more than 4 months old

This article is more than 4 months old

A watchdog has dropped its misconduct investigation into Greater Manchester police’s handling of a case involving the death of a schoolboy in Cheshire.

Yousef Makki, 17, a scholarship pupil at Manchester Grammar school, died after being stabbed by his friend Joshua Molnar, 18, during a fight in Hale Barns on 2 March last year.

Molnar claimed the incident was self-defence and was acquitted of murder and manslaughter by a jury after a trial at Manchester crown court last July, but he admitted lying to police and possession of a knife. He was given 16 months in custody.

Makki’s family had said they were “extremely” unhappy with investigations carried out by both Cheshire police and Greater Manchester police (GMP) around the case, and the forces referred themselves to the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC).

On Thursday, the IOPC said the GMP investigation had been discontinued.

Amanda Rowe, the regional director of the IOPC, said the investigation, which began in February, was discontinued after no evidence was found of “potential misconduct by any individual officer”.

She added: “We also assessed GMP’s own review of its murder investigation and acknowledge that a number of changes to its procedures will be implemented as a result of learning recommendations made. Taking these factors into consideration, our investigation has been discontinued and the force has been informed.

“On 27 April we spoke to Yousef Makki’s family to inform them of this development. Our thoughts and sympathies remain with them.”

The investigation into Cheshire constabulary’s response to incidents before Makki’s death continues.

At a pre-inquest hearing this year, Matthew Stanbury, representing the Makki family, said matters surrounding the teenager’s death “have not been sufficiently aired” and some things put before the trial jury were “presented on a false premise”.

Amy Caves, representing Cheshire police, told the hearing the force was concerned with “ongoing criminal investigations” involving “two robberies and an assault”, but no further details were made public during the hearing.

The coroner, Alison Mutch, told the family if a final inquest was held, by law it could not come to a conclusion “inconsistent with the findings of a criminal court”.

Adam Chowdhary, 18, a second defendant who went on trial alongside Molnar, was acquitted of perverting the course of justice. He was given a four-month detention order after admitting possession of a flick knife. Both he and Molnar were acquitted of conspiracy to commit robbery in the lead-up to Makki’s death.

The decision to discontinue the investigation came after a lengthy meeting with Makki’s family, the Crown Prosecution Service, GMP and Cheshire police at the end of January.

In a statement, the family said they remained “cautiously optimistic” that the findings of the separate investigation into Cheshire police may provide them with the accountability they sought from the authorities, at a time when their “confidence feels like it has hit an all-time low”.

The statement added: “At present, the coronavirus outbreak is making it extremely difficult for families like ours to get justice for their loves ones, in part due to the delay in legal proceedings and the need for us all to self-isolate.

“The added isolation we are all experiencing at this time does, on bad days, prove challenging to remain … strong – but with our extended family, friends, supporters and legal team remaining committed to fighting to get justice for Yousef, we remain hopeful that a full inquest into Yousef’s death will go ahead to uncover the answers our family so desperately deserve, in the short term. The fight must go on.”