The Chief Constable of West Midlands Police has issued a formal apology to a parliamentary committee after admitting that incorrect evidence he gave regarding a football fan ban was generated by artificial intelligence.
An Apology for Misleading Evidence
Craig Guildford has written to the Home Affairs Select Committee to offer his "profound apology" for an error in his testimony. The mistake centred on intelligence used to justify banning away supporters of Israeli club Maccabi Tel Aviv from a Europa League match against Aston Villa last November.
Initially, Guildford told MPs on Monday that the force did not use AI. He claimed a fictitious match cited in police intelligence – a game between Maccabi Tel Aviv and West Ham that never occurred – was the result of "one individual doing one Google search".
The AI Source Revealed
In a follow-up email published on Wednesday, the Chief Constable corrected his statement. He revealed that the false intelligence "arose as a result of a use of Microsoft Copilot", an AI assistant.
Guildford stated he had honestly believed his original explanation, having been advised that a Google search was the source. "My belief that this was the case was honestly held and there was no intention to mislead the committee," he wrote.
The fabricated match details were part of a package presented to a council-led security advisory group, which ultimately made the contentious decision to prohibit the visiting fans from attending the fixture at Villa Park.
Scrutiny and Broader Context
This revelation comes as Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood prepares to address MPs on the findings of a report by His Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary. The report specifically investigates the decision-making process behind the Maccabi Tel Aviv fan ban.
The incident raises significant questions about the use of generative AI tools in critical policing operations and intelligence gathering. It highlights the potential for "hallucinations" or factual errors from such systems to directly influence major public safety decisions.
West Midlands Police now faces scrutiny over its internal verification processes and how unverified AI-generated content was incorporated into official risk assessments presented to a statutory advisory body.
