EU: Eurocops exchange arrests
01 March 1993
Mr Williams (not his real name) and his two brothers, were travelling by train from Brussels to support the Welsh football team when they were arrested by the Belgian police in Kortrujk on 17 November 1992. The three brothers and two others were met by 11 police officers and two police dogs and taken by van to the police station. They were photographed and details of their names, addresses, date of birth and occupation were recorded. A form of identification was photocopied - those with credit cards instead of passports were treated the same. They had committed no offence and were released. But on their return to Brussels, along with 50 other Welsh supporters, they were again met by police, one of whom held a 5 page computer list with names and dates of birth. The group produced various forms of identification, Mr Williams' brother showed a credit card and was let through even though his name was on the list.
Mr Williams also produced a credit card but was seized by the police and taken with another man to Brussels Central police station. He was held for 16 hours, strip-searched, and photographed. His requests for information were consistently met with the reply that he was being held because his name was on a list supplied by the UK police. Before being deported he had to sign a form in French and was not given a copy of it. Mr Williams, along with others on the list, was handcuffed, taken to Ostend and put on a ferry back to Britain.
Mr Williams' brother rang the British Consulate in Brussels and spoke to the Duty Officer, who confirmed that Mr Williams was being held because his name was on a list. The Consulate later said that the Belgian Police held Mr Williams on a charge of being drunk and disturbing public order and of having no identity papers - there were, in fact, numerous witnesses to confirm that he had not been drinking at all and that he had the same identification as many others. It was only on the production of identification (a credit card) that the police were able to check his name on their list.
NCIS record incorrect information - twice
Subsequent inquiries revealed that the whole episode was related to an earlier incident in November 1990 when Mr Williams and one of his brother's had been to a previous football match in Luxembourg. Then they were travelling from Ostend to Luxembourg and were taken off a train at Arlon on the Belgian-Luxembourg border by armed police with 30 other Welsh supporters. Their luggage and bodies were searched, photographs taken, together with their names and date of birth. On returning from this trip, in 1990, the local MEP, Mr Wayne David, took up their complaint and was told by the Belgian Ambassador that photographs had been taken to aid the British police liaison officer in Luxembourg and that Mr William's name had not been registered by the Belgian police.
It transpires however the information was sent to the National Criminal Intelligence Service in the UK saying that they had been removed from the train for disorderly behaviour. This inaccurate information from the 1990 incident had been sent back to the Belgian police in November 1992 by the NCIS. Following the second incident in 1992 the Williams family sent in a Data Protection Subject Access Request to determine what information was being held by the NCIS. This showed that the NCIS's football computer index recorded that Mr Williams had caused "disorder" at Arlon in 1990. The search showed the NCIS had recorded that:
14.11.90 Mr Williams had travelled by train with others for the Luxembourg Wales match. Caused disorder en route, removed, photographed and detained by Belgian Transport Police at Arlon. A photograph taken at Arlon was also attached.
The search also showed that the 1992 incident had been added to Mr Williams' "record":
20.11.92 Arrested for public order offence in Brussels 2.50 pm 18.11.92 and expelled from the country. 2.12.92: Confirmation that subject was arres