Hillsborough Inquests: PC claims statement was changed

Graham Roberts was among the 96 victims of the Hillsborough disaster

An ex-police officer who tried to help the injured at Hillsborough has claimed his statement was changed to say fans had "dropped" a victim of the crush.

Christopher Yates also said officers "slightly" led him to identify a victim he encountered as Graham Roberts.

The new inquests into the 15 April 1989 disaster focused on the 24-year-old from Wallasey's final movements.

Ninety-six fans were fatally injured in a terrace crush at the Liverpool versus Nottingham Forest FA Cup semi-final.

Mr Roberts, a British Gas engineering supervisor, attended the match in Sheffield with friends.

They entered the Leppings Lane end of the ground through an open exit gate before heading into a tunnel that led to fenced terrace enclosures.

The court heard how PC Yates - on duty at the match - went into a concourse area at that end of the ground at about 15:05 BST, five minutes after the kick-off.

He told the jury his hand-written statement had been amended in writing that was not his own.

In one part of his report, he wrote: "I removed a male who was obviously dead from beneath the tunnel."

The jury heard how the phrase "having been dropped there by supporters" had been written above the original text, so that it subsequently read: "I removed a male who was obviously dead from beneath the tunnel, having been dropped there by supporters."

Mr Yates said the additional phrase was "not in his handwriting" and that he had not seen the male fan "being dropped by supporters".

"The first time I saw the male is when I saw him laid face down on the ground," he told the court.

The crush happened at the Leppings Lane end of the stadium, where Liverpool supporters were standing

Mr Yates told the court he checked the man for a pulse and gave him mouth-to-mouth resuscitation.

But he did not mention trying to revive the man in any of his statements about the disaster.

Asked by Michael Mansfield QC, representing Mr Roberts' family, if he could explain this, he said he could not.

In October 1989 he told West Midlands Police, who were investigating the disaster and showed him photographs of the victims, that he was 95% sure the man was Mr Roberts.

Matthew Hill, representing the coroner, asked Mr Yates if he felt he had been "led in any way to a particular photograph or particular identity".

Mr Yates replied: "Slightly I did, yes, because the emphasis tended to point towards Graham, rather than the selection of people that were actually on that photograph.

"I would say there was a slight hesitation when they went along showing the various pictures - slight hesitation when it came to Graham."

'Panic set in'

Mr Yates confirmed to the coroner that he had seen pictures of clothing and mortuary photographs during the identification process.

The jury also heard from the friends who went with Mr Roberts to the match.

Kenneth Fellowes described how he was moved towards the front of the terrace enclosure, pen three.

He said after the crowd had stopped moving, Mr Roberts was "10 feet away to my right".

He added in his statement: "The crowd had stopped moving around us and we had managed to land in a good spot to watch the game. We smiled at each other acknowledging this.

"Within about 20 seconds it became very uncomfortable. In a short time I was struggling to breathe."

Mr Fellowes said "panic set in quickly and the situation was terrifying" and he did not see Mr Roberts again after their "initial look".

He said he lost consciousness and when he came round he saw a "pile of bodies" with people "entangled" together.

"There were people trying to pull me out. I was still coming round and it was very difficult to take in the horror of what was happening," he said.

"I looked across to the right to where I thought Graham would have been but there was just a pile of bodies there.

"The scene was so horrific I thought everyone in the pile must be dead."

At 16:25 a doctor confirmed Mr Roberts had died and some of his friends identified his body in the early hours of the following morning.

The inquests, sitting in Warrington, Cheshire, are due to resume on Thursday.

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