A South Yorkshire police inspector who was on duty at Hillsborough when 96 people died has admitted that two “nasty” allegations police made against Liverpool supporters, on which The Lying Rag relied for its stories under the headline The Truth on 19 April 1989, were false.
Gordon Sykes acknowledged at the new inquest into the disaster that in 1989 he had related stories that 10 dead supporters had been stripped of their possessions by other fans and that one dead supporter had “numerous wallets” on him. Police officers made those allegations to a local news agency, White’s, which led to The Lying Rag reporting that fans were looting and picking the pockets of dead people at Hillsborough.
Pushed by Michael Mansfield QC, representing 75 families whose relatives were killed in the crush at the FA Cup semi-final between Liverpool and Nottingham Forest at Sheffield Wednesday’s Hillsborough ground, Sykes expressed regret for the false stories. Mansfield said they became “long-term allegations” against Liverpool fans “remembered by generations of people”.
Sykes, who policed outside Hillsborough’s Leppings Lane turnstiles, an area he has described as seriously unsafe and “a death trap” throughout the 1980s, also agreed that the disaster was foreseeable, and that Sheffield Wednesday, the Football Association and South Yorkshire police had played “Russian roulette” with supporters’ lives.
Sykes repeatedly denied, however, that the stories about the supporters were originated, spread and confirmed by police officers to “besmirch” and “denigrate” Liverpool supporters because the police would not own up to their own failures that caused the deaths. He confirmed that the South Yorkshire police chief constable, Peter Wright, had concluded a Police Federation meeting four days after the deaths, on 19 April 1989, by saying: “If anybody should be blamed, it should be the drunken, ticketless individuals.”
That was the case Wright wanted to “pull together” and present to the official inquiry by Lord Justice Taylor, Sykes confirmed. The jury was told that Taylor rejected it.
Sykes said he maintains his belief that some supporters were drunk and continued to try to push into the ground outside, despite police instructions. However, he said he now has a more “balanced” view than in 1989, and agrees the disaster was also caused by the “deathtrap” layout of the Hillsborough ground, and “catastrophic” failures by senior officers, Ch Supt David Duckenfield, and Supts Roger Marshall and Bernard Murray, who were “simply not up to the job.”
In October 1989, Sykes acknowledged, he attended another Police Federation meeting, alongside then chief inspector Norman Bettison and other officers, with the local Conservative MP Michael Shersby, which was aimed at rebutting Lord Justice Taylor’s official report. Published in August 1989, Taylor concluded that the principal cause of the disaster was that police lost control, and rejected the police’s allegations that drunk fans were a cause.
At that Police Federation meeting, Sykes and other officers maintained the allegations of bad behaviour by supporters, including that 10 bodies had been stripped and that one dead supporter was found with “numerous” wallets.
Challenged by Mansfield that the allegation of stripped bodies was “a bald-faced lie”, Sykes accepted that a police log from the night of the disaster showed all 10 people had possessions on them, including money. He also accepted, under questioning by Mark George QC, representing 22 bereaved families, that none of the 95 people who died had “numerous” wallets on them. One dead supporter had two wallets, George said, and the second wallet contained that supporter’s own bank card, which had his name on it.
Mansfield asked Sykes whether “as a matter of conscience”, he was prepared to say he regretted his “mistake” maintaining those false stories.
“You see, these little mistakes end up in print,” Mansfield said, adding that the stories became “long-term allegations” against Liverpool fans, “and are remembered by generations of people. Do you regret now what has happened here?”
“Yes, I regret that,” Sykes replied.
Sykes had already told the inquest in his previous full day in the witness box that he believed and repeatedly warned senior police officers throughout the 1980s that the approach to the Leppings Lane turnstiles was “a death trap”.
He agreed with George that the disaster was “entirely foreseeable” and could have happened to Tottenham Hotspur supporters who were given the Leppings Lane end for the 1981 FA Cup semi-final at Hillsborough, and Leeds United fans allocated it in 1987. A picture of Tottenham supporters escaping a crush on the Leppings Lane terrace in 1981 was shown to the jury, and Sykes agreed it was “horribly similar” to the scenes of Liverpool supporters in 1989 when 96 people died and hundreds were injured.
“Isn’t it the case that Sheffield Wednesday, the Football Association – who selected Hillsborough as being suitable for a capacity match – and South Yorkshire police, whose job it was to police the match, were in effect playing Russian roulette with fans’ lives?” George asked Sykes. “If they did know about the problems, then they were playing Russian roulette because on your evidence this was a disaster that was going to happen sometime, and the only question was when and which geographical part of the country the bereaved families would be coming from?”
Sykes, watched by approximately 100 people in the courtroom whose relatives were killed at Hillsborough, most of them parents who lost their children, replied: “Yes.”
“Was it a scandal that situation was allowed to continued unheeded all that time?” George said.
“Yes,” Sykes replied.
“Was it a disgrace that it took the death of 96 people before the authorities finally took notice of what people had been saying for years?” George asked “Yes,” he said.
“And that is the real truth about Hillsborough: that this was eminently foreseeable and could easily have been prevented?”
“Yes sir,” Sykes agreed.
Jonathan Laidlaw QC, for the Football Association, and Andrew Waters, representing Sheffield Wednesday, both challenged Sykes, pointing out that he had never informed either organisation of his view that the ground was a “deathtrap.” Nor did he use the word “deathtrap” in any previous statements or evidence, until February this year, when he was interviewed for this new inquest.
Sykes maintained, however, that both the FA and Sheffield Wednesday must have known of the crushing problems at Hillsborough, based on “the number of near misses we have had.”
“Do you think you were a little unwise to have lent yourself this morning to [Mark George QC’s] proposition?” Laidlaw asked him.
“No,” Sykes replied.
The inquest continues.
Gordon Sykes acknowledged at the new inquest into the disaster that in 1989 he had related stories that 10 dead supporters had been stripped of their possessions by other fans and that one dead supporter had “numerous wallets” on him. Police officers made those allegations to a local news agency, White’s, which led to The Lying Rag reporting that fans were looting and picking the pockets of dead people at Hillsborough.
Pushed by Michael Mansfield QC, representing 75 families whose relatives were killed in the crush at the FA Cup semi-final between Liverpool and Nottingham Forest at Sheffield Wednesday’s Hillsborough ground, Sykes expressed regret for the false stories. Mansfield said they became “long-term allegations” against Liverpool fans “remembered by generations of people”.
Sykes, who policed outside Hillsborough’s Leppings Lane turnstiles, an area he has described as seriously unsafe and “a death trap” throughout the 1980s, also agreed that the disaster was foreseeable, and that Sheffield Wednesday, the Football Association and South Yorkshire police had played “Russian roulette” with supporters’ lives.
Sykes repeatedly denied, however, that the stories about the supporters were originated, spread and confirmed by police officers to “besmirch” and “denigrate” Liverpool supporters because the police would not own up to their own failures that caused the deaths. He confirmed that the South Yorkshire police chief constable, Peter Wright, had concluded a Police Federation meeting four days after the deaths, on 19 April 1989, by saying: “If anybody should be blamed, it should be the drunken, ticketless individuals.”
That was the case Wright wanted to “pull together” and present to the official inquiry by Lord Justice Taylor, Sykes confirmed. The jury was told that Taylor rejected it.
Sykes said he maintains his belief that some supporters were drunk and continued to try to push into the ground outside, despite police instructions. However, he said he now has a more “balanced” view than in 1989, and agrees the disaster was also caused by the “deathtrap” layout of the Hillsborough ground, and “catastrophic” failures by senior officers, Ch Supt David Duckenfield, and Supts Roger Marshall and Bernard Murray, who were “simply not up to the job.”
In October 1989, Sykes acknowledged, he attended another Police Federation meeting, alongside then chief inspector Norman Bettison and other officers, with the local Conservative MP Michael Shersby, which was aimed at rebutting Lord Justice Taylor’s official report. Published in August 1989, Taylor concluded that the principal cause of the disaster was that police lost control, and rejected the police’s allegations that drunk fans were a cause.
At that Police Federation meeting, Sykes and other officers maintained the allegations of bad behaviour by supporters, including that 10 bodies had been stripped and that one dead supporter was found with “numerous” wallets.
Challenged by Mansfield that the allegation of stripped bodies was “a bald-faced lie”, Sykes accepted that a police log from the night of the disaster showed all 10 people had possessions on them, including money. He also accepted, under questioning by Mark George QC, representing 22 bereaved families, that none of the 95 people who died had “numerous” wallets on them. One dead supporter had two wallets, George said, and the second wallet contained that supporter’s own bank card, which had his name on it.
Mansfield asked Sykes whether “as a matter of conscience”, he was prepared to say he regretted his “mistake” maintaining those false stories.
“You see, these little mistakes end up in print,” Mansfield said, adding that the stories became “long-term allegations” against Liverpool fans, “and are remembered by generations of people. Do you regret now what has happened here?”
“Yes, I regret that,” Sykes replied.
Sykes had already told the inquest in his previous full day in the witness box that he believed and repeatedly warned senior police officers throughout the 1980s that the approach to the Leppings Lane turnstiles was “a death trap”.
He agreed with George that the disaster was “entirely foreseeable” and could have happened to Tottenham Hotspur supporters who were given the Leppings Lane end for the 1981 FA Cup semi-final at Hillsborough, and Leeds United fans allocated it in 1987. A picture of Tottenham supporters escaping a crush on the Leppings Lane terrace in 1981 was shown to the jury, and Sykes agreed it was “horribly similar” to the scenes of Liverpool supporters in 1989 when 96 people died and hundreds were injured.
“Isn’t it the case that Sheffield Wednesday, the Football Association – who selected Hillsborough as being suitable for a capacity match – and South Yorkshire police, whose job it was to police the match, were in effect playing Russian roulette with fans’ lives?” George asked Sykes. “If they did know about the problems, then they were playing Russian roulette because on your evidence this was a disaster that was going to happen sometime, and the only question was when and which geographical part of the country the bereaved families would be coming from?”
Sykes, watched by approximately 100 people in the courtroom whose relatives were killed at Hillsborough, most of them parents who lost their children, replied: “Yes.”
“Was it a scandal that situation was allowed to continued unheeded all that time?” George said.
“Yes,” Sykes replied.
“Was it a disgrace that it took the death of 96 people before the authorities finally took notice of what people had been saying for years?” George asked “Yes,” he said.
“And that is the real truth about Hillsborough: that this was eminently foreseeable and could easily have been prevented?”
“Yes sir,” Sykes agreed.
Jonathan Laidlaw QC, for the Football Association, and Andrew Waters, representing Sheffield Wednesday, both challenged Sykes, pointing out that he had never informed either organisation of his view that the ground was a “deathtrap.” Nor did he use the word “deathtrap” in any previous statements or evidence, until February this year, when he was interviewed for this new inquest.
Sykes maintained, however, that both the FA and Sheffield Wednesday must have known of the crushing problems at Hillsborough, based on “the number of near misses we have had.”
“Do you think you were a little unwise to have lent yourself this morning to [Mark George QC’s] proposition?” Laidlaw asked him.
“No,” Sykes replied.
The inquest continues.
