Dying G20 man said 'they got me'

Ian Tomlinson whispered "they got me" as he uttered his last words before dying at the G20 protests, an inquest heard today.

The newspaper seller was seen staggering away after he was shoved to the ground by a police officer before he suddenly collapsed "like a tree falling", jurors heard.

Kamran Saleem, a charity boss, told the inquest he was less than three yards away from the dying man as people rushed to his aid.

Mr Saleem said: "I think when somebody went to help him he said something on the lines of, 'They got me, the f***ers got me'."

Mr Tomlinson was asked if he wanted an ambulance but replied "no, they got me", Mr Saleem added.

"Mr Tomlinson was in and out of consciousness," the witness said.

Moments before his collapse, Pc Simon Harwood, part of the Metropolitan Police's specialist Territorial Support Group (TSG), was caught on film pushing Mr Tomlinson to the ground in Cornhill, central London.

Footage shows Mr Tomlinson turning away from a line of officers with his hands in his pockets before he is pushed in the back.

He was helped to his feet but collapsed and died about 100 yards away shortly afterwards.

Yesterday Pc Harwood was branded "absurd" as he said the newspaper seller was "almost inviting" physical confrontation.

Relatives walked out on Mr Tomlinson's inquest in tears as Pc Simon Harwood was accused of talking "rubbish" and "lying".

The inquest is expected to last for another four weeks at the International Dispute Resolution Centre in London's Fleet Street.