FIVE police officers are facing criminal proceedings in connection with the death of a 30-year-old man in custody last year.

Following an investigation by the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) into their actions prior to the death of Portuguese man Andre Moura, the evidence will be referred to the Crown Prosecution Service.

The five officers, who are all police constables, were among those who attended the scene of Mr Moura's arrest before his death in the early hours of Saturday July 7, 2018.

One officer has been referred for assault occasioning actual bodily harm and misconduct in public office, and the four others for misconduct in public office.

Mr Moura, was arrested after GMP responded to reports of a domestic incident at around 11:30pm on Friday 6 July in Seventh Avenue, Limeside, near Oldham.

Following his arrest, Mr Moura was taken via police van to Ashton police station where he was found to be unresponsive. An ambulance was called, and Mr Moura was taken to Tameside Hospital where it was confirmed that he had died at around 1.30am, of July 7.

A post mortem proved inconclusive, but further tests, including a toxicology report, were undertaken to help determine the cause of Mr Moura’s death. It will now be for an inquest to determine the exact cause of Mr Moura’s death.

Since the start of the investigation the IOPC says it has recovered and analysed CCTV, police officer body worn video, and mobile phone footage of the incident. It also conducted house to house enquiries and have taken statements from independent witnesses. All 10 officers who were subject to investigation were also interviewed.

The investigation report has been shared with GMP for their consideration of recommendations in relation to the conduct of its officers. It will consider publishing its findings after all potential coronial, criminal and conduct proceedings have concluded.

IOPC regional director Amanda Rowe said: “As ever our thoughts remain with Mr Moura’s family and friends and everyone affected by this sad incident. We continue to keep his family informed of the progress of our investigation and we thank them and all those involved in the investigation for their patience and understanding.

“We concluded our investigation very recently and I have decided that the actions of five officers should be referred to the CPS. We have a responsibility to refer any case to the CPS where there is an indication that a criminal offence may have been committed. The CPS will decide whether to prosecute any of the officers referred.

“This is a very serious and sensitive case involving a large number of officers, and a huge amount of evidence which has required rigorous investigation. The complexity of the investigation meant that we also needed to commission two expert reports to assist us, and inevitably that has added to the length of our investigation.”