Merseyside Police and LFC work together to tackle ticket touts

Working alongside Liverpool Football Club, we have arrested eight men and issued three Football Banning Orders in an ongoing operation targeting ticket touts selling counterfeit and genuine tickets at inflated prices outside Anfield Stadium.

During the operation so far, three men (pictured) have been issued with three-year Football Banning Orders (FBOs) preventing them from the area of Anfield, as follows:

45-year-old Michael Poole from Knowsley Road, Bootle
25-year-old Mathew Fleming from Cornwood Close, Belle Vale
33-year-old Stephen Beck from Field Lane Estate, Fazakerley

 

Five further men have been arrested during the operation, all of whom remain under investigation.

A 34-year-old man from Walton
A 20-year-old man from West Derby
A 49-year-old man from Anfield
A 36-year-old man from Kensington
A 48-year-old man from Walton

Community Policing Inspector Graeme Rooney said: "We believe that the vast majority of these offenders are targeting visitors to the city, who may not always be aware of what a genuine ticket looks like, and have travelled far and spent big to watch their team.

"Regardless of distance travelled though, to be conned in this devious way is completely unacceptable and the feeling of being turned away at the turnstiles must be absolutely devastating.

"Our operation will continue on future matchdays, working closely with the club. Although we're pleased with the results so far, we also want this to serve as a powerful deterrent in the future. We'll keep identifying ticket touts and doing all we can to prevent them from ruining people's experience of football and the city.

"Liverpool welcomes many thousands of tourists every week and we are determined to ensure that those who come to our city are protected from such fraud. Our advice to any supporters is clear: don't buy from ticket touts, it's a massive risk and you might just be throwing money down the drain."

You can report any information to officers at the game, pass information via @MerPolCC, 101 or Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111, or via the club at the following link: https://www.liverpoolfc.com/corporate/ticket-touting