TV shows fan firing at Belgian police

Press, 1 June 1985, Page 9

TV shows fan firing at Belgian police

NZPA-AP London Britain’s independent television has shown film of a fan firing a gun at the Belgian police during the rioting at the European soccer championship in Brussels that left 38 people dead. The slow-motion television film showed a man in a bright-green jacket appear to draw a pistol, fire at the police without anything happening, apparently reload, take aim in the direction of the police and fire again. A flash was clearly visible after the second shot. ITV said the Belgian police had confirmed that cartridge cases were found at the stadium after the match, in which Juventus, of Turin, Italy, defeated Liverpool, of England, 1-0. ITV said the man with the gun was with Juventus supporters, who were attacking the police from the perimeter of the playing field at Heysel Stadium in Brussels. It appeared from the film that the incident occurred, after Liverpool supporters had charged into a crowd of

Juventus fans in the stands, causing a retaining wall to collapse. Most of the dead and injured were crushed or trampled when the wall collapsed. “The discovery that a Juventus supporter fired a pistol inside the stadium during the riot is certain to worry football (soccer) authorities all over Europe,” the television commentator said. After the first firing incident, the man disappeared into the crowd. He was then shown coming out of the crowd for a second time, throwing a missile at the police, drawing his gun and firing for a third time. “Then, as if through bravado, he raises the pistol above his head and waves it at the police, but they seem to have seen nothing or elected to do nothing,” the commentator said. “The man then retreats back into the crowd and for a fleeting second he turns, unaware he is being seen by the camera. “The hunt now has to be on for the man in the green jacket, who is now probably back in Turin,” the commentator said.