Paris (AP) – After the chaos at the Stade de France around the Champions League final, the Paris police prefect admitted failure.
“It was obviously a failure,” Didier Lallement said at a hearing in the French Senate’s Interior Committee. Because people were attacked and the image of France was shaken. However, it was made possible for the match between Liverpool FC and Real Madrid to take place and that there were no serious injuries or deaths.
Lallement said there was a large crowd around the stadium. Finally, tear gas was used to push the people back because the people had not complied with the officials’ requests. “I am aware that people with good intentions were also hit by the gas,” said Lallement. “I’m really sorry on behalf of the police prefecture, but I’ll say it again, unfortunately there was no other way.” Apart from direct physical attacks, tear gas is the only way the police can get crowds to retreat.
Meanwhile, at the hearing in the Senate, it became known that the recordings of the video surveillance at the Stade de France have now been deleted and are no longer available for a reconstruction of the processes. After seven days, the camera images were automatically deleted because the judiciary had not requested them for evaluation, said a person in charge of the football association, as reported by the France Info broadcaster.
The police in Paris registered more than 100 arrests and 230 injuries around the final at the end of May. The European Football Union UEFA explained the chaos at the entrance to the high number of fans without valid tickets and commissioned an independent investigation report. The kick-off time was pushed back by more than half an hour. Fan representatives criticize a one-sided representation by UEFA.