Three men were arrested for alleged homophobic chanting at Liverpool's match against Chelsea at Anfield.
Three men aged 23, 37, and 49, were arrested following three separate incidents in Anfield stadium and on Anfield Road on Saturday, January 21. They were arrested "on suspicion of homophobic intentional harassment alarm and distress".
The 37-year-old was bailed pending further enquiries, and the 23-year and 49-year-old will attend a voluntary interview. A further 16 people were also ejected from the stadium by stewards for various offences during the Premier League match including Hillsborough chants.
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Superintendent Paul Sutcliffe and match commander for Saturday's game, said: “Merseyside Police will not tolerate hate crime of any form, and we will bring to justice anyone found responsible for committing any offensive chanting. In this instance, if the three suspects are charged and found guilty for the offence, then we will we will be seeking football banning orders on them.”
He added: “It is vital that anyone who witnesses such an offence reports it to stewards or the police immediately, so we can take the necessary action. As with all matches, we work very closely with both clubs to ensure the safety of the public and the teams themselves.”
To report a hate crime contact Merseyside Police social media desk via Twitter @MerPolCC or Facebook Merseyside Police CC. You can also call 101, or contact the independent charity Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.
If, for any reason, you do not wish to report a hate crime to the police, the independent charity Stop Hate UK to run a 24/7 confidential helpline for all victims of hate crime on 0800 138 1625 or www.stophateuk.org. You can also download the Stop Hate UK reporting app on Google Play or the Apple App Store.
Across Merseyside, we also have a number of third party reporting centres including fire stations, citizens advice bureaus and hospitals. A list of locations can be viewed here: merseyside-third-party-hate-crime-reporting-centres.pdf
You can report an incident of discrimination in football - whether it took place online or at a grassroots, non-league or professional game – by downloading the Kick It Out app. You can also report any incidents via their online form here: https://www.kickitout.org/forms/online-reporting-form.
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