Hillsborough inquest: Police 'only concerned' about alcohol

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-north-east-wales-33552012

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The brother of a north Wales man who died in the Hillsborough disaster has told an inquest the police were only interested in how much alcohol the victims had to drink.

Steven Brown, 25, from Holt, Wrexham, was one of 96 football fans killed in the crush during an FA Cup tie in 1989.

Andrew Brown told the hearing in Warrington he was interviewed by police after identifying his brother's body.

He said it seemed alcohol was "all they were concerned about".

Steven Brown was a lifelong Liverpool fan and season ticket holder and had travelled to Sheffield Wednesday's ground on 15 April to watch the semi-final match against Nottingham Forest.

Andrew Brown said pen three of the Lepping's Lane stand started to get really full at about 14:30 BST.

He said it was very hard to hold your position in the crowd and lost sight of his brother at kick-off time.

Mr Brown was able to get out of the tunnel and went back to their car, where they agreed to meet if they got separated, before reporting his brother missing.

He said he went to the gymnasium where the bodies of the dead had been taken and identified his brother in the early hours of 16 April before being interviewed by Graham Kelly from the FA and the police.

"It seemed all they were concerned about was how much alcohol we'd had to drink," he told the hearing.

The court was shown video footage of Mr Brown being carried away across the pitch on a piece of advertising hoarding.

A South Yorkshire Police officer, Gerard Michael McManus, told the court he had seen another officer administering mouth to mouth to Mr Brown on the pitch and he joined in to give him a heart massage.

He said a man who identified himself as a doctor came and told them to stop as there was no point in carrying on.

The inquest continues.