Terry Burns

Terry Burns was stabbed in a fight in Villiers Street and Embankment Tube Station on 4 October 1986.

He was chased down Villiers Street into Embankment Tube Station where he was stabbed six times on the stairs.

Terry Burns had been a West Ham supporter and was said to have been stabbed by Millwall supporters that had been:

He was either stabbed at the top of Villiers Street or in Embankment Tube Station but none of the witnesses actually saw him get stabbed.

He had been stabbed through the heart.

Terry Burns had been a labourer from Heath Grove in Barming. He had been out for the night to London's West End with two friends and they had not been rival football fans. Terry Burns had been a West ham supporter whilst his friend who was stabbed had supported Birmingham City.

However, Terry Burns and his friends had been involved in a fracas in Covent Garden after which Terry Burns and his friend that was stabbed ran away towards Villiers Street where, 'by chance', they met some Millwall football supporters that had already been involved in several violent incidents and been looking for someone to provoke into a fight. It was said that there had been about a dozen youths involved who had all been drinking heavily.

The court heard that Terry Burns and his friend had been ideal victims and they were chased down Villiers Street to shouts of:

Terry Burns's 20-year-old friend was stabbed twice but was able to run off under Hungerford Bridge. He had been stabbed in the throat and arm and was later taken to hospital.

However, Terry Burns ran into Embankment Tube Station where he was cornered on the stairs of the station and attacked. He was seen by various witnesses to be bleeding from the body, with his green shirt ripped. It was said that:

It was said that it was then obvious to bystanders that Terry Burns was then bleeding profusely from the chest and that they did their best to tend to him, with one person there, a surgeon, attempting mouth-to-mouth resuscitation.

Blood samples from Terry Burns showed that he had been over the drink drive limit for alcohol and that he had also taken cannabis, however, it was noted that there was no suggestion that that had had any bearing on the case.

The police said that he had been stabbed a large number of times. It was later revealed that he had been stabbed six times.

The police said that there was nothing to suggest that they knew the gang that had attacked them. They said:

Five people said to have been involved in the affray connected with Terry Burns's murder were charged on 5 December 1986 with making an affray at the Freemasons Arms pub in Charing Cross on the day Terry Burns was murdered.

They had been:

1. 19-year-old of Tonbridge Road, Maidstone.
2. 17-year-old of Whitefield Cottages, Ashford.
3. 19-year-old of Sunderland Road, Forest Hill, London.
4. 20-year-old of Kings Norton, Birmingham.
5. 16-year-old of Bromley.

Whilst at the same time, two other men were remanded, having been charged with Terry Burns's murder. They were:

1. 20-year-old, address unknown.
2. 20-year-old of Sandbourne Road, Brockley. (also charged with attempted murder of Terry Burns's friend)

However, the murder charges against the two men were dropped at the trial on 4 December 1987 along with many of the other various assault and affray charges against the group.

The judge directed the jury to acquit the two men, stating:

After their acquittals, Terry Burns' mother said:

She said that she went to the trial at the Old Bailey also to hear all the evidence connected with his death, saying: