Liverpool parade driver charged with attempted murder, was impaired, police allege

The Associated Press

· Posted: May 27, 2025 5:12 AM EDT | Last Updated: 1 hr ago

A 53-year-old British antheral who injured 65 radical erstwhile helium plowed his conveyance into a assemblage of Liverpool shot fans celebrating their team's Premier League title has been arrested connected suspicion of attempted murder, constabulary said Tuesday.

The operator was besides being held connected suspicion of unsafe driving and driving connected drugs, said Det. Chief Supt. Karen Jaundrill. Some 50 radical were treated astatine hospitals and 11 remained hospitalized successful unchangeable condition, constabulary said. 

Four of the injured are children, ambulance work spokesperson Dave Kitchin said earlier. One of those children was among 4 radical trapped nether a van that was subsequently lifted by firefighters, Merseyside's occurrence main said.

The operator had managed to get astir constabulary roadblocks by pursuing an ambulance that was rushing to dainty a idiosyncratic having a bosom attack.

Merseyside Police said they are not treating the incidental arsenic coercion and are not looking for different suspects. The unit has not identified the arrested driver. Police successful Britain usually bash not sanction suspects until they are charged. 

Detectives person been moving to portion unneurotic wherefore the minivan plowed into crowds packing a constrictive street, conscionable aft the players of Liverpool Football Club had celebrated the Premier League title with an open-topped autobus parade. 

The incidental has been noted by the British Royal Family. Princess Anne thanked archetypal responders successful idiosyncratic connected Tuesday, portion King Charles III released a connection arsenic helium prepared to beryllium the archetypal monarch to springiness the code from the throne successful Canadian Parliament since Queen Elizabeth II did truthful successful 1977.

"It is genuinely devastating to spot that what should person been a joyous solemnisation for galore could extremity successful specified distressing circumstances," the King said. "I cognize that the spot of assemblage tone for which your metropolis is renowned volition beryllium a comfortableness and enactment to those successful need."

'He conscionable kept going'

Hundreds of thousands of Liverpudlians crammed the streets of the larboard metropolis successful northwest England connected Monday to observe the squad winning England's Premier League this play for a record-tying 20th top-flight title.

As the parade was wrapping up, a minivan turned onto the parade way and plowed into the oversea of fans wrapped successful their reddish Liverpool scarves, jerseys and different memorabilia. A video connected societal media showed the van onslaught a man, tossing him successful the air, earlier veering into a larger crowd, wherever it plowed a way done the radical and pushed bodies on the thoroughfare earlier coming to a stop.

"It was highly fast," said Harry Rashid, who was with his woman and 2 young daughters arsenic the minivan passed by them.

"Initially, we conscionable heard the pop, pop, popular of radical conscionable being knocked disconnected the bonnet of a car."

Rashid said the assemblage charged the halted conveyance and began smashing windows.

"But past helium enactment his ft down again and conscionable plowed done the remainder of them, helium conscionable kept going," Rashid said. "It was horrible. And you could perceive the bumps arsenic helium was going implicit the people."

'The full state stands with Liverpool': Starmer

Prime Minister Keir Starmer called the scenes successful Liverpool appalling and hailed the bravery of archetypal responders. 

"Scenes of joyousness turned to utter fearfulness and devastation, and my thoughts and the thoughts [of] the full state are with each of those that are affected," helium told reporters connected Tuesday.

"Liverpool stands unneurotic and the full state stands with Liverpool," Starmer added.

WATCH | British constabulary apprehension 53-year-old antheral aft car slams into crowd: 

Liverpool FC CEO Billy Hogan expressed his condolences connected behalf of the nine for those affected by the, and helium thanked the archetypal responders and civilians who rushed to assistance the injured.

"This play was 1 of celebration, emotion and joyousness dispersed crossed the metropolis successful our full instrumentality base, and it ended successful unimaginable scenes of distress with this appalling incident," said Hogan.

The Liverpool nine has dealt with calamity before, astir notably connected April 15, 1989, erstwhile 94 of its fans were crushed to decease astatine a Hillsborough Stadium lucifer successful Sheffield, England. Three much deaths were subsequently attributable to the incident, including a antheral who died successful 2021.

Police identified the fishy successful Monday's incidental arsenic a achromatic section man, successful a imaginable determination to forestall misinformation from flooding societal media.

Last summer, a teen successful the adjacent municipality of Southport killed 3 girls successful a stabbing rampage astatine a creation people and wounded 10 others, including 2 adults. An incorrect sanction of the fishy was dispersed connected societal media and radical said helium was an asylum-seeker. In fact, helium had been calved successful the U.K. Rioting dispersed crossed England and Northern Ireland, targeting Muslims and refugees successful hotels for asylum-seekers, lasting astir a week.

"If there's a vacuum, we cognize determination are immoderate elements that volition effort to inflame the concern and to make that speculation and to enactment misinformation retired there," Rotheram, the mayor, told BBC.