By Mark Baber
February 25 – Corinthians are appealing the penalties imposed by CONMEBOL on the club after the tragic death of 14-year-old Bolivian fan Kevin Beltran Espada, who was struck by a flare allegedly thrown by travelling Corinthians supporters.
Corinthians officials have expressed their deep sorrow, whilst the club is appealing the decision to ban their supporters from the rest of the Copa Libertadores competition.
The Corinthians board is considering a boycott of the competition if an appeal being heard by CONMEBOL today is not successful.
Espada was killed when a plastic part of a flare penetrated his skull during the Copa Libertadores game on Wednesday between Corinthians and San Jose in the Bolivian city of Oruro.
The game continued and at the end of the game the Corinthians coach, Tite, said he would happily exchange the club’s Club World Cup win over Chelsea last December to bring the boy back saying: “I know that this won’t take any of the pain away from the family but I would swap the world championship for the life of the child. I’m so sorry about what happened tonight.”
Bolivian police have charged two Corinthians fans with homicide and 10 others with being accessories to the crime.
Conmebol announced that all Corinthians supporters would be banned from the club’s remaining Libertadores games and rescinded the club’s away ticket allocation, ordering all tickets sold to be refunded or exchanged. The measures will be in place until the conclusion of an investigation into Espada’s death is complete, which is expected to take up to 60 days.
The ban will effect Wednesday’s home game against Millonarios and subsequent home matches against Sao Jose and Tijuana.
Corinthians said: “Corinthians assesses that the punishment imposed is unjust, in that it directly undermines the right of innocents, as it hurts not only the club, but mainly over 80,000 fans who will lose the right to attend matches, already bought in advance, and they do not deserve such punishment.”
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