Fourteen fans charged following disturbances near Tynecastle
Thursday 12 November 2015 17:14, UK
Police in Edinburgh have arrested and charged 14 football fans in connection with a disturbance prior to last month's match between Hearts and Kilmarnock.
At around 3pm on Saturday, October 3, police were called to McLeod Street near Tynecastle stadium in response to a report of a fight involving more than 20 rival supporters.
Additional officers attended the scene and assisted in breaking up the disturbance resulting in the arrest of a 21-year-old man from Kilmarnock.
A number of other people involved fled the area, however, following an extensive police investigation conducted by divisional officers and the Football Coordination Unit (FoCUS), which is a specialist police resource designed to tackle violence, disorder and anti-social behaviour associated with football.
A further 14 males aged between 14 and 28 have been arrested and charged for various offences. All are expected to appear before Edinburgh Sheriff Court on February 17, 2016.
Inspector Bob Innes of Police Scotland said: "We treat such incidents extremely seriously. The safety of everyone attending football matches is of paramount importance and violence and disorder will not be tolerated.
"Thanks to some excellent police work and with the assistance of our partners at Hearts Football Club, we have successfully traced and charged 14 males in connection with this incident.
"They will appear in court in due course and in the meantime they have been ordered not to attend at any regulated football match in the UK. I can reassure the public that anyone involved in this sort of criminal activity will be swiftly dealt with."
Hearts have vowed to get tough with troublemakers this season and have already taken steps to ban a number of supporters from Tynecastle after an alleged attack on Ross County supporters last month.
