The head of the Colombian Football Federation has been arrested after allegedly fighting with security guards at Sunday’s chaotic Copa América final.
Ramón Jesurún, who is also a vice-president of Conmebol and a member of the Fifa council, was detained along with his son, Ramón Jamil Jesurún. The pair were at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami to watch Colombia play Argentina. The game ended in a 1-0 victory for Argentina.
According to an arrest report by Miami-Dade Police Department, the Jesurúns were involved in an altercations with security staff around midnight, just after the end of the game. The report says the elder Jesurún “became irate” at a security guard who was stopping people entering an area where the media had gathered. When the 71-year-old pushed the guard back, his son allegedly grabbed the security member’s neck and punched him. The report says the two men then fought with security guards.
The father and son were booked into Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center at just past 4am on Monday, according to Miami’s WPLG Local 10. They face felony counts of battery on a specified official or employee.
The final was played amid chaotic scenes. Fans climbed over gates and barriers to enter the stadium, causing a long delay to kick-off, as officials struggled to control entry entry to the venue.
There appeared to be significant damage to the stadium as a result. Video and images posted to social media showed the shattered side railings of an escalator inside the stadium, with shoes, soda cans, reading glasses and articles of clothing left behind. Security railings at a checkpoint in the southwest entrance to the stadium were bent over as thousands of people, including crying children, pushed against them.
Miami-Dade police said over 800 law enforcement officers were at the event.
