THE CELTIC BOARD, POLICE SCOTLAND SEEMINGLY JUST DECLARED WAR ON CELTIC FANS
- BY LIAM CARRIGAN
- 21 minutes ago
- 4 min read
The headline may sound hyperbolic, but if what I’ve been told, and provided documentary evidence of in the past couple of hours is true, then it is sadly, a very true state of affairs.
Multiple Celtic season ticket holders were subjected to a “dawn raid” by police this morning, seemingly following information provided to them by the club.
The first-hand account provided to me by a source who shall remain nameless at this time, but suffice to say, it is someone I trust implicitly, represents a major escalation of the ongoing war of words between the Celtic Board and a section of the Celtic support.
I will try my best to detail what happened this morning, whilst, of course, leaving out any information that may lead to the identification and subsequent further vilification of those involved.
Doors Kicked in, Phones Confiscated as Celtic Board, Police Scotland Seek to Crush Dissent
24 hours ahead of the Celtic AGM, which as I’ve already stated multiple times this week is set to be one of the most fractious in the club’s history, it seems the club want to make it clear in no uncertain terms just who is in charge.
Early this morning, Celtic Park Time, Police Scotland engaged in the latest in a long line of massive abuses of power against football fans. A front door was kicked in, and the home of a family that counts among them multiple season ticket holders was, to quote my source directly: “turned completely upside down.”
In the end, one individual was charged with a breach of the peace, and released within an hour of the whole sorry episode.
Now, you may argue that police are well within their rights to arrest a perpetrator where they suspect criminality. However, using SWAT team style tactics to arrest someone for an alleged breach of the peace charge, one which will, if past precedent is anything to go by probably not even lead to a conviction, is a gross abuse of power. There’s simply no need for that level of police force or violence for such a minor alleged crime.
Unless, of course, the main aim wasn’t to arrest a perpetrator but rather to intimidate and to silence a series of dissenting voices. Voices that grow louder and angrier with each unforced error the Celtic Board make in their handling of fan relations.
Even compared to the likes of the recent banning of the Green Brigade and the ongoing enmity between numerous fan groups and the Celtic Board, Police Scotland’s actions this morning mark a massive escalation in this ongoing feud.
This isn’t just about statements, or banning people from going to the football anymore. Personal liberties have been violated, senior citizens brutalized and intimidated, all in the name of ONE breach of the peace charge?
The father of the accused, according to my source, suffers from a degenerative vascular condition, and requires a means to contact family in the event of a sudden flare up.
Police Scotland confiscated this man’s phone and his tablet, without explanation, leaving him alone, shivering, with a front door kicked in, and no means of contacting family or friends, should his condition, which I’m sure the police are aware could be aggravated by cold weather, suddenly decides to flare up.
Again, this isn’t about the Green Brigade, this isn’t about the wider implications of Ultra Fan culture. These are exactly the same bully boy tactics Police Scotland have deployed with impunity for years. Such tactics were a major driving force behind the long-running and ultimately victorious fan-led campaign to rescind the “Offensive behavior at football Act”.
Such tactics were exactly why the Fairhurst report was commissioned. That it failed to bring about any semblance of accountability is just one in a long list of instances where the Celtic Board, Police Scotland and other powerful figures have failed the wider Celtic support.
It might be a member of the Green Brigade today, and I stress at this point, I do not know if those subjected to this morning’s police attack are members of any fan group, but it could be any of you tomorrow if this is allowed to go unchallenged.
It seems some at Police Scotland are out to “settle old scores” with the alleged backing of at least some members of the Celtic Board.
Again, if any of this is wrong, I invite the club or indeed Police Scotland to come out and set me straight. But I have heard the first-hand accounts, I have seen the evidence, I fully believe in the veracity of what I write today.
The police could not have carried out an attack as targeted and vindictive as they did this morning, without inside knowledge from the club.
Make no mistake about it, whatever you think of the Celtic Fan Collective, the Green Brigade or indeed any other group, this is an attack on some of our own. It cannot be permitted to go unopposed.
Expect a PR offensive from the club later today to try and play this down, or discredit the victims as best they can. Then again, if Michael Nicholson is running the show, in all likelihood we’ll probably hear nothing at all.
I expect this won’t be the last time I visit this particular story. More to come soon, I am sure.