A Liverpool fan whose racist gesture was snapped and published to the world on Twitter has been arrested by Merseyside Police.
The man, who is said to be 59 and from north Wales, faces an investigation into the gesture, in which he appeared to impersonate a monkey.
Saturday’s FA Cup fourth round game between Liverpool and Manchester United was the first meeting between the sides since the controversial Luis Suarez-Patrice Evra racism allegations in October.
The fall-out from that game saw Suarez served with an eight-match ban for racial abuse, a decision which prompted an unprecedented defence by Liverpool of their player.
With emotions running high, there was always likely to be a few incidents at Anfield on Saturday – and the picture that started doing the rounds on Twitter has prompted decisive action, with an investigation launched by the police’s ‘hate crimes’ division.
A statement from Merseyside Police read, “The man has been taken to a police station, and will be questioned by officers. Merseyside Police would like to thank North Wales police and Liverpool Football Club for their assistance with this matter.”
