Madrid: Spanish police on Tuesday arrested 34 people over a football riot last month, in which a Deportivo La Coruna fan died after being thrown into a river.
Those detained included the two people suspected of causing the death, police said in a statement.
A 43-year-old man died after being beaten and pushed into a river in the brawl, in which dozens of rioters rampaged with metal bars and knives near Atletico Madrid’s Vicente Calderon stadium on November 30.
A video camera captured the moment when the man — a member of the Deportivo hard-core fan group Riazor Blues — was heaved over the embankment into the freezing river by his adversaries.
Medics said at least 11 other people were lightly injured, including a police officer, in the brawl.
Police took 21 people into custody on the day of the brawl, all members of radical fan groups from Deportivo and Atletico, as well as two other Madrid clubs, Rayo Vallecano and Alcorcon.
Spanish football authorities and the government have vowed to banish members of violent and abusive supporters’ groups known as “ultras” from stadiums and their surroundings following the brawl.
Spain’s Football Federation and the government-controlled Higher Sports Council have said tougher sanctions for clubs over violent behaviour by supporters will come into force before the end of the year.
Closing off the areas inside stadiums where “ultras” gather and stepping up efforts to violent groups and prevent them from gathering near stadiums on matchdays are among the steps being considered.
