West Ham fan jailed for breaching football banning order after just eight days

A West Ham fan who breached his football banning order after just eight days has been jailed.

Tony Hackett, of Hillview Road, Nottingham, was handed a 28 day sentence at Blackfriars Crown Court on Friday.

The court heard how he was spotted in a Middlesbrough hotel bar on January 21, the day of the Hammers’ 3-1 win over Boro.

His five year banning order, which he had been given on January 13, stipulated that he could not travel to towns and cities on the day that West Ham were playing there.

The 57-year-old was subsequently arrested and charged by Cleveland Police before appearing in court in London.

Hackett’s banning order had been imposed after he was found to be involved in violence that broke out outside the White Swan pub in Upper Street, Islington, following West Ham’s match at Arsenal on August 9, 2015.

Missiles and objects including bottles, tables and chairs were thrown between the two sets of fans.

PC Andy Sheldon, from the Met’s Football Unit, said: “This sentence demonstrates that football banning orders really do ‘have teeth.’

“Hackett believed he was above the law but he was quickly caught out and now must serve a custodial sentence where he can reflect on his actions.”