An urgent inquiry has been demanded into how a fake bomb left by a security firm caused a Premier League match at Old Trafford to be suspended on Sunday.
A controlled explosion was carried out on the “incredibly realistic-looking” device that was found in the toilets. The security alert led to United’s 75,000-seater stadium being evacuated just 20 minutes before kick-off time against Bournemouth.
The match was subsequently called off and re-scheduled for Tuesday at 8pm.
Tony Lloyd, the police and crime commissioner for Greater Manchester, said the “fiasco” had put fans’ lives in danger as he called for a full inquiry.
“It is outrageous this situation arose and a full inquiry is required to urgently find out how this happened, why it happened and who will be held accountable,” Mr Lloyd said.
Army bomb disposal experts carried out a controlled explosion on the device in the North West Quadrant of the ground at 4.30pm.
Hours later, police confirmed the fake device had been left by a “private company” after an earlier drill involving search dogs.
Ed Woodward, United’s vice-chairman, said the club will “investigate the incident to inform future actions and decisions”.
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