A British guy who ploughed his car into crowds of Liverpool fans during their Premier League title parade in May, hurting over 130 people, is going to prison for 21 and a half years. That’s what the court said Tuesday.
Paul Doyle, who’s 54, got his sentence after admitting to 31 crimes connected to the attack. Prosecutors said he lost it and used his car as a weapon.
Doyle drove onto streets packed with celebrating fans, hitting both adults and kids. Some people were thrown onto his car, and others got dragged under it. Last month, he pleaded guilty to things like causing serious harm on purpose and trying to cause serious harm. This happened on what was supposed to be the first day of his trial.
Prosecutor Paul Greaney told the court that Doyle was a man in a rage whose anger had completely taken hold of him when he went after the fans, injuring 134 people, eight of whom were children.
Greaney said, He not only caused injury on a large scale, but also spread fear and horror among people who believed they were attending a day of celebration.”
Doyle’s lawyer, Simon Csoka, said his client was horrified by what he did and felt remorseful, ashamed and deeply sorry for the injuries he caused.
Judge Andrew Menary, who sentenced Doyle at Liverpool Crown Court, said it was “almost impossible to comprehend” how anyone could act like that.
The judge said, “To drive a vehicle into crowds of pedestrians with such persistence and disregard for human life defies ordinary understanding.”
The court also heard that around a million people were in Liverpool to celebrate the team’s 20th league title and to watch the players and staff parade on an open-top bus with the trophy.
Doyle had driven into the city center to pick up friends who’d been at the parade. In just over a minute, right before 6 p.m., he kept hitting people while yelling, swearing, and honking his horn.
One of the injured was Anna Bilonozhenko, who had to have surgery for a broken knee after Doyle’s Ford Galaxy hit her. She had come to Britain from Ukraine in 2024 to escape the war.
She said in a statement, “We came here because of war, hoping to feel safe. That sense of safety has now been taken away.”
Other victims told the court that the event had left them with lasting physical and emotional problems. They said they now have issues with working, taking care of their families, going into crowded places, and even watching Liverpool play.
