Paedophile football coach Barry Bennell taken to hospital
Monday 28 November 2016 15:59, UK
Paedophile football coach Barry Bennell has been taken to hospital after police responded to a "fear for welfare incident" at a hotel in Stevenage on Friday night.
Bennell, a youth coach who worked for Crewe, Manchester City, Stoke and several junior teams in north-west England and the midlands, was given a four-year sentence for raping a British boy on a football tour of Florida in 1994 and then a nine-year sentence in 1998 for 23 offences against six boys in England.
Thames Valley Police said: "Police officers attended an address in Knebworth Park, Stevenage just before 11pm on Friday in connection with a fear for welfare incident.
"A 62-year-old man was located and was taken to hospital in order to receive medical treatment, where he remains.
"At this stage of enquiries, it would be inappropriate to comment further."
In May 2015, he was jailed for two years for sexually abusing a 12-year-old boy in 1980.
He is now out on license.
In an interview last week with The Guardian, former player Andy Woodward broke his silence on abuse he suffered at the hands of Bennell while at Crewe between the ages of 11 and 15.
Ex-Crewe midfielder Steve Walters and former Manchester City forward David White have since also claimed to have been abused by Bennell, while former England international Paul Stewart has described the abuse he suffered from an unnamed youth coach as a child over a four-year period.
*A new hotline for footballers who have been the victims of sexual abuse has been launched by the NSPCC. The hotline will be available 24 hours a day on 0800 023 2642.
