Two more men arrested in connection with Blackpool fan death
Tony Johnson died after being assaulted following Blackpool v Burnley match
Last updated 23rd May 2023
A further two arrests have been made in relation to the death of Blackpool fan Tony Johnson,. A 31-year-old man from Blackpool and an 18-year-old man from Burnley, are being questioned on suspicion of violent disorder and assault.
Mr Johnson, 55, sadly died after being assaulted on Saturday, March 4th, following a football match between Blackpool and Burnley earlier that day. The assault occurred outside The Manchester pub, at the junction of the Promenade and Lytham Road.
He suffered a serious head injury and was taken to hospital, but sadly died later that night.
A 33-year-old man from Burnley was arrested at the scene on suspicion of wounding and was later bailed, pending further enquiries. Last Wednesday (May 17th) he was re-arrested on suspicion of manslaughter.
On the same day warrants were carried out at four addresses in the Fylde area and four addresses in the Burnley area and six further people were arrested on suspicion of violent disorder. They are
• A 49-year-old man from Blackpool
• An 18-year-old man from Poulton-le-Fylde
• An 18-year-old man from Foulridge
• A 28-year-old man from Blackpool
• A 31-year-old man from Colne
• A 45-year-old man from Foulridge
This takes the total number of people arrested as part of this investigation to nine. All nine have now been released on bail pending further enquiries.
Supt Chris Hardy, of Lancashire Police’s West Division, said: “Our thoughts remain with the loved ones of Mr Johnson at this difficult time, and we hope these latest arrests show that we are determined to get answers for them.
“Our investigation is very much ongoing and we continue to ask anybody with information about this incident to get in touch. Perhaps you know who was involved or have overheard somebody talking about it, or maybe you were in the area and saw something you have not yet shared with police.
“Whatever information you have, please tell us, by calling 101 and quoting log 675 of March 6th.”
Hear all the latest news from across Lancashire on the hour, every hour, on 97.4FM, DAB, at rockfm.co.uk, and on the Rock FM app.