THE RUC in Derry yesterday described the deliberate crashing of a stolen minibus into more than a dozen cars in three Protestant estates in the Waterside area of the city as an act of "wanton sectarianism".
The incident involved a minibus load of Glasgow Celtic supporters who were returning from Co Donegal after watching the Celtic v Rangers Scottish Premier Division dash, which Rangers won 0-1, on television.
The supporters, believed to be from Derry, watched the match in a bar near the Donegal fishing village of Glengad. The bar is a favourite haunt of Celtic supporters because it can pick up Scottish television transmissions.
After the match the minibus, with up to 18 supporters, returned to Derry. The vehicle was then driven around three mainly Protestant housing estates in the Waterside area of the city and it was driven into 14 cars.
Most of the cars were parked, but in two cases the damaged cars were being driven. One man was treated in hospital for shoulder and neck injuries and a mother and her two young children were treated for shock. Three of the cars were badly damaged and the rest were slightly damaged.
The minibus was later recovered in the mainly Catholic Gobnascale estate, also in the Waterside area. One man was arrested and released after he was questioned about the incidents by police officers. "This was deliberate, reckless and sectarian," a police officer said.