President of the Colombian Football Federation Ramon Jesulun He was arrested in Miami during the incident at Sunday's Copa America final, according to a police report released Monday.
According to Miami-Dade County police records, Jeslun was arrested Sunday night at Hard Rock Stadium on suspicion of “assault on an officer/employee.”
At the home stadium of the NFL's Miami Dolphins, fans swarmed the gates, some were pushed to the ground, and some tried to sneak into the stadium through huge air conditioning ducts, causing chaos and forcing the start of the game to be delayed by 80 minutes.
Argentina beat Colombia 1-0 in the Copa America final with an extra-time goal. Lautaro Martinez.
According to Colombian daily El Tiempo, Jesrun, 71, was not allowed to enter the arena with her son and other family members for the awards ceremony after the contest had ended.
Jesulun's son confronted the guards, who denied them entry.
The paper said Jesrun, vice-chairman of regional governing body CONMEBOL, had also joined the fray before police intervened.
Miami-Dade Police said in a statement that 27 people were arrested at the game and 55 people were removed from the stadium.
“I am extremely proud of our officers' response to a volatile situation and their hard work to keep our community safe, as well as our law enforcement partners who provided critical support,” the police chief said. Stephanie Daniels “As part of our thorough analysis of last night's match, we will review the protocols we have in place to ensure an orderly, safe and secure environment at all future events.”
The coalition said in a statement that it had proposed procedures to security forces but they were not adopted.
“Fans without tickets were gathering in the vicinity of the stadium, which delayed the normal entry for ticket holders, causing delays in entry and the closure of the doors,” CONMEBOL said in a statement. “In this situation, CONMEBOL, in accordance with its contractual responsibilities established for security operations, has deferred to the decision of the authorities of the Hard Rock Stadium. In addition to the clauses established in the contract, CONMEBOL recommended to these authorities procedures that have been tested for events of this magnitude, but these were not taken into account. We regret that what was meant to be a great celebration of sport has been tainted by violent acts committed by people with bad intentions.”
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©Agence France-Presse
