Madrid police arrest four people in connection with Vinícius ‘hanging’ incident
According to the police, the four people in custody are “ultra” supporters, associated with another Madrid football club.
Four people were arrested on Tuesday in Spain as part of the investigation into the hanging of a mannequin bearing the image of Real Madrid striker Vinícius Junior in late January, police said.
The arrests come two days after fresh racist slurs were leveled at the Brazilian star during a Spanish league football match, sparking outrage in the country and across the country. foreign. Three other men were arrested in Valencia on Tuesday in connection with the incident.
The four people arrested in the Spanish capital are charged with “hate crimes”, a criminal category that includes racist offenses in Spain, police said in a statement.
Three of them are “active members of an ultra group of supporters of a Madrid club”, added the police without identifying the club.
The model, wearing a Vinícius Junior jersey, was found hanged on January 26, the day Real Madrid’s 3-1 derby win over Atletico Madrid in the Copa del Rey quarter-finals, under a banner stating ‘Madrid hate Real Madrid’. .
After the incident, Real Madrid denounced a “malicious and disgusting racist and xenophobic act” against their 22-year-old, a regular target of racist insults, and said in a statement that they hoped the perpetrators would be punished. An investigation has been opened following the incident.
The investigations, based in particular on testimonies, made it possible to establish that these four supporters, “identified during matches classified as high risk” within the framework of “measures to prevent violence in sport”, were the “presumed perpetrators”. of the mannequin’s hanging, police said.
The arrests come just a day after Real Madrid filed a complaint with the Spanish prosecutor’s office alleging a ‘hate crime’ against Vinicius.
On Sundaythe Brazilian striker was racially abused by Valencia fans before and during the match, which left the player in tears.
Real Madrid manager Carlo Ancelotti has considered replacing the star striker after Vinícius said Mestalla fans chanted ‘monkey’ at him. He said that Vinícius initially did not want to continue playing.
“When a stadium shouts ‘monkey’ at a player and the coach considers kicking him off the pitch because of it, it means there is something wrong with this league,” Ancelotti said.
euronews Gt
