Jump to content
  • Sign up for free and receive a month's subscription

    You are viewing this page as a guest. That means you are either a member who has not logged in, or you have not yet registered with us. Signing up for an account only takes a minute and it means you will no longer see this annoying box! It will also allow you to get involved with our friendly(ish!) community and take part in the discussions on our forums. And because we're feeling generous, if you sign up for a free account we will give you a month's free trial access to our subscriber only content with no obligation to commit. Register an account and then send a private message to @dave u and he'll hook you up with a subscription.

Hillsborough - Copper admits cover up


kevshim
 Share

Recommended Posts

Post the flippin article...

A Hillsborough policewoman has become the first officer to admit she was bullied into changing her statement in a huge police cover-up.

Special Constable Debra Martin made a statement telling how a Liverpool fan of 15 died in her arms at 3.55pm on the day of the tragedy, which claimed 96 lives.

But officers branded her a “liar” and forced her to change the time in her account to 3.15pm – to hide the fact he could have been saved.

Crucially, police have always claimed victims of the disaster died almost instantly in the crush that forced the FA Cup game’s end at 3.06pm.

They used that as the excuse for allowing only one of 45 ambulances on to the pitch to help victims. And the coroner Dr Stefan Popper brought in a “cut-off” point, ruling that all the victims were dead by 3.15pm.

But today Debra tells how at least one of the victims – teenager Kevin Williams – was still alive 40 minutes later. She said she gave Kevin mouth-to-mouth resuscitation and remembers how he looked up at her just before he died and murmured the word “Mum"

 

Debra, 45, is the first member of South Yorkshire Police to go public with her revelations about cover-ups – and her evidence could prove vital in a new inquiry

 

She told the Sunday Mirror: “The whole thing made me feel angry. These families deserve the truth after all these years.”

The dental nurse is believed to be among at least 12 officers ordered to change their initial statements.

She tells how she had four visits from senior officers who pressurised her into changing her statement. She also got hate mail at work

 

Debra was in the Leppings Lane End when the crush began on April 15, 1989.

“It was bedlam,” she says. “There were injured, dying and dead people everywhere.”

One of those fighting for life was Liverpool fan Kevin Williams. Debra says: “Kevin was struggling to breathe. I gave him CPR (mouth-to-mouth). I’ll never forget his little face looking straight into mine. He uttered the word ‘Mum’ – it was his last and he died in my arms.” Debra became a problem for the police because her account didn’t tally with the official line. And soon a terrifying operation began to silence her.

Debra says: “We were all told not to talk to the Press, then a female officer and a man knocked at my door.

“The WPC told me my statement was wrong and she was there to change it as it was inconsistent with what had happened.”

Debra was determined not to alter her statement. “But when they came back a second and a third time, they were more insistent,” she says.

“The WPC said, ‘You’re a liar. We don’t even know if you were there. It’s probably all in your imagination’. I couldn’t believe it. Then I began getting hate mail at the police station.

“The final time the WPC hounded me at my house, they were adamant I had to change the time Kevin died. She put a new statement I hadn’t written under my nose – I couldn’t take it any more, so I signed it.” Debra’s revelations come as the Government prepares to make public all official documents relating to the disaster at Liverpool’s FA Cup semi-final with Nottingham Forest.

Chief Constable of South Yorkshire Police, Meredydd Hughes, said last week: “If I thought there was a cover-up, I’d already have dealt with it.”

But Debra remains distraught at the way families such as Kevin’s were denied the truth. She said: “Every year, the nightmares of what happened that day come back to the families. They have got to be told the truth – only then will those nightmares finally end.”

Last night Kevin’s mother Anne, 57, said: “I’ve been screaming for 20 years that my son could have been saved – he wasn’t dead at 3.15pm. The police just covered it all up.”

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Why take this long to come out and tell the truth? They don't deserve any praise for coming forward as it's their duty to come forward.

 

That is my feeling, really. I read that and said, "Why wait so fucking long to say it?" and I don't know how she can live with that information and not come forward much sooner.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Why take this long to come out and tell the truth? They don't deserve any praise for coming forward as it's their duty to come forward.

 

Agree with that but it's a bit of a misleading article as it's definitely not an exclusive. Debra Martin came out in the early nineties to say that Kevin Williams died in her arms at 3:45. Her statement has always been the foundation of Anne Williams' case against the police.

 

Am pleased for the added publicity but strange of the Mirror to frame the article like that as it certainly isn't new information.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Chief Constable of South Yorkshire Police, Meredydd Hughes, said last week: “If I thought there was a cover-up, I’d already have dealt with it.”

 

These words seem a trifle odd to me - they could come back to haunt him. I know the claim in this article this article isn't new, but the exposure might be the catalyst for more ex-policemen to come forward. Also didn't he apologise last week - seems a bit contradictory?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Chief Constable of South Yorkshire Police, Meredydd Hughes, said last week: “If I thought there was a cover-up, I’d already have dealt with it.”

 

These words seem a trifle odd to me - they could come back to haunt him. I know the claim in this article this article isn't new, but the exposure might be the catalyst for more ex-policemen to come forward. Also didn't he apologise last week - seems a bit contradictory?

 

BBC NEWS | Wales | 90mph police chief's driving ban

 

The former chair of roads policing at the Association of Chief Police Officers (Acpo) has been banned from driving for speeding at 90mph.

 

Meredydd Hughes, the chief constable of South Yorkshire, apologised after being caught on camera in a 60mph zone on the A5 at Chirk near Wrexham in May.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Agree with that but it's a bit of a misleading article as it's definitely not an exclusive. Debra Martin came out in the early nineties to say that Kevin Williams died in her arms at 3:45. Her statement has always been the foundation of Anne Williams' case against the police.

 

Am pleased for the added publicity but strange of the Mirror to frame the article like that as it certainly isn't new information.

I seem to remember a TV programme some years back about the Anne Williams case. Wasn't there a medical expert who gave evidence and said it may not have been the word "Mum" that the police woman heard.

 

Although as has been said this storey isn't exactly a fresh revelation it can only be positive as it brings the case back into the headlines for Anne Williams and people who never thought any cover up took place may now have second thoughts.

 

As for the Mirror, this is just another point scoring exercise in its battle for circulation with the Sun.

 

Don't underestimate the part the then Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher played in this cover up. She's in it up to her neck.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Let's hope this new evidence finally wins Anne Williams fight for a new enquiry, in that it clearly invalidates the coroner's conclusion that all the deaths occurred before 3:15pm.

 

Surely fresh evidence for a new enquiry...

 

Why take this long to come out and tell the truth? They don't deserve any praise for coming forward as it's their duty to come forward.

 

That is my feeling, really. I read that and said, "Why wait so fucking long to say it?" and I don't know how she can live with that information and not come forward much sooner.

 

This is not new evidence, this police officer was on the Cook report years & years ago.

 

Cook Report video for Hope For Hillsborough - seeking justice for the survivors and families of the 15 April 1989 Hillsborough Disaster where 96 Liverpool fans were killed.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

As much as I would love it to happen . Can we expect justice from the "establishment" The Guild for 4 case is a shocking example of British Justice at it's worst and yet in spite of the evidence uncovered nobody was ever convicted of an offence. Maggie the bitch has a lot to answer for.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

20 years too late. Cowardice to own up now.

How much did she get for the story is the first thought on my mind.

 

I'm sorry but this kind of utter shite really fucks me off. 20 years too late? Really? So fuck it we wont bother following it up then? Utter fuckin' wank.

 

This has now made it into the public domain where hopefully it can't be ignored and could have a huge impact on getting another enquiry and getting the stupid 3:15pm cut off point removed. But yet some people would rather shoot that down do.

 

I heard about this women a long time ago, as has any person who read up on Anne Williams fight and the Hillsborough campaign, so to now come on caller her a coward and saying "20 years too late" when this women said it a long time ago just stinks of ignorance.

 

This is a good thing. If it is not allowed to be swept back under the carpet then it could have a significant impact.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

20 years too late. Cowardice to own up now.

How much did she get for the story is the first thought on my mind.

Congratulations for failing to read the entire thread before posting. Because if you had, you'd realise it isn't new evidence, it hasn't been 20 years, and you'd look like less of an arse.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

 

Had she admitted to being pressured to lie about it, though? Isn't that the main point of the Mirror article?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I really hope this is totally, 100% correct but I have problems with people who believe in something yet change their account of things because they were allegedly pressured by others.

 

Why has she waited all this time to go public?

 

She hasn't. Read the whole thread. It's going round in circles.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

 Share

×
×
  • Create New...