Hillsborough charity bike ride van raided outside Anfield

Six cyclists from Limerick were due to take part in Ride for the 96 to St Helens.

Hillsborough fundraisers had their bikes, passports and money stolen by sick thieves – just yards away from Anfield stadium.

Six friends travelled to Liverpool from Ireland to take part in today’s Ride for the 96, a charity bike ride which is being held in St Helens. But their van was raided as they went on a tour of Anfield yesterday. Their bikes, which are each worth up to €3,000, together with passports, clothes, a satnav and a quantity of money were all taken by the thieves while their van was parked in Venmore Street.

Liam Mulcahy, one of the cyclists, blasted the crooks. He said: “We parked up literally across the road from Anfield. “When we got back all our bikes were gone. “The thieves took everything – our money, passports, even our jeans and socks.” The window of the van was smashed around noon, it is believed. Mr Mulcahy added: “I am a Liverpool fan and I’ve been over from Ireland 11 times before. “This is a real kick in the teeth. “Hillsborough is an important cause for me, but for a moment this made me feel like never coming back to Liverpool. “We had been planning this trip for four months so it’s pretty devastating that this has happened.”

Mr Mulcahy travelled to Ireland by ferry with his friends Gerry Finn, Richie Cleary, Barry O’Byrne, Stephen O’Meara and Pat Culligan. The Ride for the 96 is a 96km course that starts and finishes at the Sutton Leisure Centre in St Helens.

It begins at 10am. Chief Inspector Chris Hitchell, from Merseyside Police, said: “This is an absolutely terrible thing to happen to anyone visiting our city. “But it is made worse by the fact that this group are here to raise money for charity and a cause which is dear to so many Liverpudlians’ hearts.”