Hillsborough: Police report due
The UK's police watchdog is to publish its report over claims of misconduct by a senior police officer following the Hillsborough football tragedy.
The Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC) has been investigating allegations that Sir Norman Bettison supplied misleading information following the tragedy, on April 15 1989.
Sir Norman, who has always strenuously denied any wrongdoing, was a chief inspector with South Yorkshire Police at the time of the disaster in which 96 football fans died.
A spectator at the FA Cup semi-final between Liverpool and Nottingham Forest, Sir Norman was involved in the police investigation into what happened at the ground.
He resigned from West Yorkshire Police in October amid controversy over his handling of the aftermath of the tragedy, saying the scrutiny was too much of a distraction for the force.
Sir Norman was referred to the IPCC last year following allegations he “concocted a false story of what happened”, and the watchdog is to publish its report later, the BBC said.
Kevin Robinson, the former chairman of the Hillsborough Justice Campaign, told BBC Radio 5 that if Sir Norman had broken the law or done anything to corrupt the law he should be prosecuted accordingly.
He said: “There’s no exemption for him, it doesn’t matter what he is or who he is. We are all here to obey the law and he is no different.”
He added: “If he has got nothing to hide, then he has got nothing to worry about.”
A damning report from the Hillsborough Independent Panel in September laid bare the attempts to shift blame for the tragedy on to its victims.
