after racist insults against Vinicius, 3 people arrested in Valencia – Liberation

The investigation will not have dragged on. The Spanish police announced this Tuesday, May 23 the arrest in Valencia of three “youth” suspected of having uttered racist insults against Real Madrid striker Vinicius during a league match on Sunday in Valencia. The case sparked a wave of indignation at home and abroad, while the player published a long message on Instagram on Monday evening which documents the multiple racist attacks suffered for several months in stadiums.

On its own initiative, the parquet floor of Valencia (south-east), where the Brazilian star was insulted on Sunday during a championship match lost by the merengue club against the local team (1-0), had opened Monday investigation for a “hate crime” presumed. This criminal category includes racist insults. In the report submitted as every week to the competent authorities, La Liga said on Monday evening that it had identified “distinctly” racial slurs and monkey screams.

Spain’s Higher Sports Council (CSD) said it was analyzing the footage to identify “the perpetrators of these insults and behavior to propose the appropriate sanctions”. The CSD also recalled that, for similar acts of racism, it has already proposed this season a fine of 4,000 euros and a one-year stadium ban for the perpetrators.

The Federation also requested the adoption of “stronger measures”, which could go as far as the closure of stands, or even stadiums in the event of a repeat offense. For their part, Real Madrid and AFE, the main players’ union in Spain, have announced that they have filed a complaint with the prosecution.

The Valencia club assured Monday that it had already identified a supporter who uttered racist insults on Sunday and was looking for others. The club promised it would “exclude for life” of the stadium the identified supporters.

Mannequin hanged

In addition, the Spanish police announced a few hours earlier that they had arrested four people as part of the investigation into the hanging at the end of January in Madrid of a model bearing the image of the Real Madrid striker. Three of them are “active members of an ultra group of supporters of a Madrid club”, added the police without identifying this club. The model wearing a Vinicius Junior jersey was found hanged on January 26, the day Real Madrid won 3-1 against Atlético Madrid in the Copa del Rey quarter-finals, under a banner bearing the registration “Madrid hates Real”.

After this incident, Real Madrid denounced a “malicious and repugnant racist and xenophobic act” against his 22-year-old player, a regular target of racist insults, saying he hoped in a press release that the “responsible” be “punished”. An investigation was immediately opened.

Update : at 12:42 p.m., with the arrest of three suspects for the racial slurs against Vinicius.