Jump to contentAllNewsSportCultureLifestyleFormer West Midlands Police chief constable Craig Guildford (Richard Vernalls/PA)The Independent Office for Police Conduct has launched an investigation into former West Midlands Police chief constable Craig Guildford and three other force members following a controversial fan ban. Maccabi Tel Aviv supporters were barred from attending a Europa League match against Aston Villa at Villa Park in November due to safety concerns raised in an inaccurate police report. The police report contained eight major errors, including references to a non-existent fixture against West Ham and overstated details of 2024 disorder in Amsterdam, with reports suggesting it was produced using Microsoft Copilot. Craig Guildford is under investigation for gross misconduct over allegations that he failed to ensure due diligence was carried out regarding the accuracy of the document. A second officer and a staff member also face potential gross misconduct investigations over the errors, while two other officers involved in match planning face potential misconduct allegations. In fullEx-West Midlands Police chief investigated for gross misconduct over Israeli football fan banMore bulletinsThank you for registeringPlease refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in
Former police chief investigated over Maccabi Tel Aviv fans ban
Jump to contentAllNewsSportCultureLifestyleFormer West Midlands Police chief constable Craig Guildford (Richard Vernalls/PA)The Independent Office for Police Conduct has launched an investigation into former West Midlands Police chief constable Craig Guildford and three other force members following a controversial fan ban. Maccabi Tel Aviv supporters were barred from attending a Europa League match against Aston Villa at Villa Park in November due to safety concerns raised in an inaccurate police report. The police report contained eight major errors, including references to a non-existent fixture against West Ham and overstated details of 2024 disorder in Amsterdam, with reports suggesting it was produced using Microsoft Copilot. Craig Guildford is under investigation for gross misconduct over allegations that he failed to ensure due diligence was carried out regarding the accuracy of the document. A second officer and a staff member also face potential gross misconduct investigations over the errors, while two other officers involved in match planning face potential misconduct allegations. In fullEx-West Midlands Police chief investigated for gross misconduct over Israeli football fan banMore bulletinsThank you for registeringPlease refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in
