18. The disappearance of video tapes from the stadium

What was investigated?

The IOPC’s terms of reference included investigating:
The allegation that SYP may have been involved in the removal of video tapes from the Sheffield Wednesday Football Club (SWFC) CCTV room between 15 April 1989 and 16 April 1989, and the following specific conduct matter regarding the investigation conducted by WMP Detective Chief Inspector Kevin Tope (DCI Tope):

a) that DCI Tope failed to conduct an effective, thorough, and complete investigation into the alleged theft of two video tapes from the SWFC CCTV control room and, in doing so 
b) that DCI Tope failed to secure and preserve evidence, pursue relevant and obvious lines of enquiry and interview key witnesses
 

What was found?

• The IOPC found no evidence to support the suggestion that SYP was involved in the removal of the video tapes. In fact, the evidence indicates that SYP acted promptly and professionally when looking into the matter.

• SWFC did not alert SYP to the tapes’ disappearance immediately. When a detective first asked for them, he was told they were in a safe at the stadium.

• There was no sign of forced entry into the video room or the lockable cupboard in the room where the video recorders were. There remains some uncertainty over who had keys to the room.

• There appear to have been multiple shortcomings in WMP’s investigation into the disappearance of the tapes, or at least the records it made of the investigation. These included the fact that there was no evidence to suggest that WMP made efforts to question SWFC officials who had access to the room. 

• There is some evidence that SYP officers were critical of WMP’s approach to the matter.
 

Significant new evidence 

Beyond some witness statements, the IOPC did not obtain new evidence in this strand of its investigation. However, WMP’s investigation into the disappearance of the tapes had not previously been re-examined. IOPC investigators were able to assess in detail the actions WMP took.

1. Shortly after 9am on 16 April 1989, a technical consultant working in the SWFC control room at Hillsborough Stadium reported to club officials that two video tapes, which would have held CCTV footage recorded during the afternoon of the disaster, were missing. The tapes were among 16 believed to have been recorded by SWFC on the day of the disaster, in line with its standard approach of recording the footage of all matches held at the ground in case it needed to be reviewed. The consultant said he had left them in a locked room at the stadium overnight.
    
2. Despite investigative work being undertaken by both SYP and WMP, the tapes have never been found. It has been widely alleged that they were stolen, at some point between late afternoon on 15 April 1989 and 9am on 16 April. Further, because one of the tapes should have held footage showing he area around Gate B and turnstiles 9-12 at the Leppings Lane entrance, which would have been directly relevant to investigating the disaster, it has been suggested that they could have been removed by SYP.
    
3. The disappearance of the tapes became public knowledge when it was referred to in the 1996 ITV docudrama ‘Hillsborough’. The incident was then further examined as part of the Stuart-Smith Scrutiny the following year, which concluded that, while there was no dispute that the tapes had been stolen, they would not have provided any new significant evidence. 
    
4. For many of those who had raised concerns about the disappearance of the tapes, there was a view that questions remained unanswered. This was demonstrated when the IOPC received a complaint about the issue after it had started its investigation. The IOPC therefore added the disappearance of the tapes to its terms of reference, specifically focusing on the allegation that SYP could have been involved in the removal of the tapes.