MOSCOW (Sputnik) — Earlier in the day, an inquest jury ruled that the Hillsborough disaster, which resulted in the death of 96 people, was caused by police failures, with the victims being unlawfully killed.
"As I have said before, I want to apologise unreservedly to the families and all those affected," Crompton said, as quoted by the ITV News broadcaster.
The jury affirmed that police errors and omissions, specifically citing errors made by commanding officers, had been the main reason for the human crush at the stadium. The jury also rejected that the fans were in any way responsible for the deaths.
The jury ruling will reportedly allow for criminal investigations to be opened against a group of officials suspected of gross negligence and manslaughter in connection with the incident. Former South Yorkshire Police Chief David Duckenfield is one of the figures under investigation.
A number of inquiries into the incident have been conducted, with most concluding that a lack of police control was the chief cause of the disaster.