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The arrest took place on the Ormeau Road in Belfast on Friday after an event to mark the murder of five people at Sean Graham bookmaker’s by the UDA in February 1992.

Two PSNI officers were directed to intervene by superior officers due to concerns that Covid regulations were being breached by the size of the gathering.

A survivor of the atrocity, Mark Sykes, was arrested on suspicion of disorderly behaviour and resisting arrest.

But after an outcry about the arrest, Chief Constable Simon Byrnes suspended one officer involved, repositioned another and apologised for their conduct.

The Nolan Show today reported that the Police Federation is preparing legal papers telling the PSNI it should lift the suspension.

It reported that one police officer involved in the incident suffered a mild concussion but that this had nothing to do with the man who was arrested, Mark Sykes.

The BBC also reported that this officer was a Catholic from the Republic of Ireland who joined the PSNI because he wanted to improve the representation of nationalists in Northern Ireland.

The Police Federation Chairman Mark Lindsay has already gone on record to say that one officer was Protestant and the other was Catholic.

In an extended interview with the ‘Nolan Show’ on Monday Chief Constable Simon Byrne said the actions of his two officers “do not reflect the values of the Police Service of Northern Ireland” while going on to justify the suspension of one officer and the moving of another to different duties.

However, he did not mention that the two officers had only intervened on the direction of their superior officer regarding Covid restrictions on public gatherings, which the PSNI confirmed yesterday.

A PSNI spokeswoman said that the two officers “sought advice from their sergeant and were advised to engage”.

The PSNI said one man was then arrested on suspicion of disorderly behaviour and resisting arrest.

Police also confirmed that one police officer suffered a minor face injury.

The two officers graduated from policing college only last year.

Speaking of the two officers, chairman of the Police Federation, Mark Lindsay, said: “They are feeling very let down. They are feeling quite confused. One officer is particularly hurt, he feels he was assaulted. He was subjected to a lot of abuse.”

He said that one officer was Catholic and another was Protestant.

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Sean Graham Bookmakers row: One PSNI officer involved is ‘a Catholic from Republic of Ireland’ who suffered mild concussion during incident