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The Prosecutor’s Office of the Mexican state of Querétaro reported on Tuesday the arrest of 10 people allegedly involved in the massive fight that took place on Saturday at the Corregidora stadium between fans, during the match between the Gallos Blancos (Querétaro) and the Atlas Fútbol Club (Guadalajara). To locate these alleged perpetrators, hundreds of images and videos in circulation on social networks were analyzed.
Following the violence that shocked Mexico last Saturday, when fans of two soccer teams clashed violently in the stands and on the field, ten men were arrested.
The Querétaro Prosecutor’s Office explained in a press release that “in continuity with the investigative actions that have been carried out (…) after what happened on March 5 during the Querétaro vs. Atlas match (…) a the first 10 people.
The institution added that “21 search warrants issued by the Control Judge of the Judicial Power” were complied with.
The Public Ministry also revealed that the detainees are accused of the crimes of “attempted homicide, violence in sporting events and advocacy of crime.”
In addition to arresting these alleged criminals, the authorities seized “82 sportswear with logos of the Querétaro team, four pairs of tennis shoes -some with possible blood stains-, 22 cell phones and different indications” that will serve to continue with the investigations.
On the other hand, the Prosecutor’s Office said that in order to identify the possible perpetrators, 583 images and 78 videos that they received on their social networks were analyzed, in addition to 1,000 messages that provided them with information and complaints with anonymous phone calls.
Queretaro vs. Atlas will no longer be rescheduled: it will be 3-0 in favor of the visit.
Yes, there were punishments for the ‘bars’ of Querétaro and Atlas; for the rest of the league, there will be ‘credentialing’.
But these animation groups will continue in Mexican soccer https://t.co/l7c8zTEFTs pic.twitter.com/Cht9epCDMM
– Joaquín López-Dóriga (@lopezdoriga) March 8, 2022
The 10 detainees will be made available to the judicial authorities, who in the next few hours will determine whether they remain under arrest or release the process that will conclude whether or not they are guilty of the violence that was generated in the game.
On Tuesday, all the owners of the teams in the Mexican first division (Liga MX) met to review the progress of another investigation carried out by the Disciplinary Commission of the Mexican Soccer Federation.
Disproportionately violent clashes
On Saturday, after the fight, at least 26 people were injured, which led the Mexican Soccer League to announce the suspension of all games scheduled for Sunday in the ninth day of the Mexican league.
Civil protection services said two people were seriously injured during the disturbances, denying reports in some local media outlets and on social media that several people had died.
“The information is mixed and diverse,” said Hugo Sánchez Gudiño, journalist and researcher on the bars that are the protagonists of violence in soccer in Mexico, during an interview with France 24.
“On the one hand, official sources indicate that there are no deaths, but on Mexico’s social networks there are a large number of testimonies that there are probably fatalities,” he said.
The clashes in the stands began in the 63rd minute of the match. Overwhelmed, the stadium’s few security guards allowed the crowd to shelter on the ground, bringing the game to a halt immediately.
The images that were released showed fans fighting on the field while families with children tried to protect themselves.
The acts of violence caused discomfort and indignation in Mexico. “It is not possible that it has gotten out of control, it is very unfortunate what happened, and sadly the images in question are injured or deceased, the images leave much to be desired and we are left speechless,” said Fabiola Mendoza, a 39-year-old lawyer , to the AFP press agency.
Sánchez Gudiño told France 24 that several indicators anticipated that these events could occur, such as the multiplication of threatening messages against managers or against players by groups of Mexican barristas.
These events occur while Mexico will host the 2026 World Cup along with the United States and Canada.
With EFE and AFP