Burnley fan given football banning order for Munich Air Disaster gesture towards Man Utd supporters

A man who shouted ‘Munich’ and raised his arms in an aeroplane gesture towards Manchester United fans has been given a five-year football banning order.

Billy Rambadt was standing outside a pub in Yorkshire Street, Burnley, before United’s 1-0 win at Turf Moor on September 23 last year.  As a group of visiting fans walked past the 27-year-old, of Athletic Street, Burnley, taunted them with reference to the 1958 Munich Air Disaster.

The incident at just after 5.30pm was caught on a police officer’s body-worn camera with Rambadt later identified from the footage.  He was subsequently charged with using threatening or abusive words or behaviour likely to cause harassment, alarm or distress and was convicted at Blackburn Magistrates’ Court on Friday, February 16. As well as being given the football banning order, he was fined £500 and told to pay £85 costs and a victim surcharge of £200.

Supt Melita Worswick, from the police’s Special Operations Team, said: “Rambadt’s conduct on that day was absolutely appalling and something that I know many people will find abhorrent. Although Rambadt was not arrested at the scene, justice did catch up with him in the end. To be clear if you are not arrested at the time you commit an offence like this, be sure that we will be reviewing the evidence against you and you should expect a knock at the door.”