Football thugs jailed for 110 years over clashes
VIOLENT thugs who clashed during a Leeds United and Birmingham City match have been handed football banning orders totalling 110 years.
Hooligans fought with police and stewards when trouble flared in the West stand of Elland Road towards the end of the match last October.
Missiles, including bottles and cones, were thrown as further disorder spilled outside the ground and continued for around 45 minutes before the crowds were eventually dispersed.
Leeds District CID launched a painstaking investigation, titled Operation Bandshot, to bring those responsible to justice.
A team trawled CCTV and officers’ body-worn camera footage to fully capture all the offences arising from the incidents and identify those responsible.
A series of public appeals were also made in the press and on social media featuring images of a number of the suspects. Around 29 people, mostly Birmingham fans, were charged with violent disorder.
Of those, 23 entered guilty pleas at hearings at Leeds Crown Court in July and most have been sentenced there over the last few weeks.
A total of 19 defendants received prison sentences totalling 17 years and two months with six of those being suspended sentences.
Two youths from Sutton Coldfield received rehabilitation orders and one other defendant was given a community order.
All were given football banning orders totalling nearly 110 years.
Detective Superintendent Jaz Khan, Head of Crime for Leeds District, said: “These were some really ugly scenes of violence and the worst crowd trouble to be seen at Elland Road for more than a decade.
“Although only a relative minority of supporters of both sides were involved in these incidents, their behaviour had a significant impact on ground staff and police officers as well as other fans and families attending the game.
“Large-scale violence such as this will always be the subject of a thorough and comprehensive investigation, and we set off on many months of painstaking analysis of what had occurred, with the clear aim of identifying those responsible and bringing them to justice.
“Genuine fans, regardless of team loyalties, had no hesitation in condemning what took place. The support of the public played a huge part in the success of our appeals.
“We worked closely with our colleagues at West Midlands Police to arrest the majority of the suspects in a series of dawn raids.”
Five other men have pleaded not guilty and are due to stand trial in December, May and April.
One man is due to appear before Leeds Magistrates Court next month and a further defendant is due to be sentenced on September 28.
Their behaviour had a significant impact on ground staff and police officers as well as other fans and families attending the game Head of Crime Jaz Khan