seven people inside Spain was arrested on Tuesday, May 23, in connection with racist incidents directed at Brazilian soccer star Vinicius Junior, who plays for La Liga giants Real Madrid.
As CNN According to reports, the arrests cover two separate incidents earlier this year, both of which are being treated as hate crimes. Three men aged between 18 and 21 were arrested last Sunday, May 21, on suspicion of hurling racist insults at Vinicius during Real Madrid’s match against Valencia CF. Additionally, four people were arrested for hanging an effigy of Vinicius from a bridge near Real Madrid’s training center in January.
This past weekend’s incident in Valencia is the first time Vinicius, 22, has been subjected to racism during a game (nor is it unusual for black and African players to be subjected to such abuse). During the match, fans chanted the word “mono” (“monkey”) at Vinicius, and at one point, the referee briefly stopped play so that Vinicius could point out the insults. (According to protocol in the Spanish league, an anti-racism message was also shown on the big screen at the time).
After the game, Vinicius wrote Instagram“It was not the first time, nor the second, nor the third. Racism is normal in La Liga. The competition thinks it’s normal, so does the union and the opponents encourage it. … I apologize to those Spaniards. Those who disagree, but today, in Brazil, Spain is known as a country of racists. And unfortunately, I have no defense for what happens every week. I agree. But I am strong and will go against racists till the end.Even if it is far from here.”
in follow up Post, Vinicius shared a video containing footage of not only the Valencia game, but other instances of racist abuse throughout the season. “They are regular occurrences that have spread across several cities in Spain and even in a television programme. The video is proof. Now I ask: how many of these racists’ names and photos were displayed on websites? I’ll make it simple to answer: Zero. There’s no one to tell the sorry story or make those false public apologies.
In relation to the mannequin incident, Spanish authorities stated that three of those arrested were “active members of a radical fan group of a Madrid football club.” The effigy was specially hung ahead of Real Madrid’s Copa del Rey quarterfinal clash against cross-town rivals Atlético Madrid; An accompanying banner read, “Madrid hates Real.”
Spanish authorities said, “The investigation carried out by the police through evidence, witnesses and open-source digital research, among other things, led to the identification of four people suspected of the crime.” He said the suspects’ fan group had previously been identified as “high risk”.
