Heartland fined N4.75m for crowd violence
The League Management Company (LMC) has fined Heartland FC a total of N4,750,000 and will play their next three home games behind closed doors after the revenge attack on regional rivals FC IfeanyiUbah at the weekend.
Heartland also face suspended points deduction for the crowd incidence that trailed their Week 28 fixture against FC IfeanyiUbah at the Dan Anyiam Stadium in Owerri.
One, Iyke Jacob, identified as the club’s Supporters Club Chairman was also banned from all Nigeria Professional Football League (NPFL) matches for the rest of the 2015/16 season by the LMC.
The LMC also recommended to the Imo State Football Association (ISFA) and Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) to reconsider the role of the ISFA Security Committee Chairman, Mr. Teddy Isiadinso who also serves as a Match Commissioner for the NFF.
The recommendation was based on the Match Commissioner’s report which cited Isiadinso as pledging to accept responsibility for any breach of the peace before, during and after the match.
The Owerri club were slammed six-count violations of the NPFL Framework and Rules by the LMC after reviewing reports and video evidence provided by the match commissioner and delegates to the match.
Heartland were fined of N750,000.00 (Seven Hundred and Fifty Thousand Naira only) for failing to ensure restriction of access to restricted areas by unauthorized persons in the course of the match, in breach of Rule B13.52.
The second count read, “You are in breach of Rule B13.52 of the Framework and Rules of the Nigeria Professional Football League, in that on Saturday, 23rd July 2016, after your Match Day 28 fixture: Heartland FC vs. FC IfeanyiUbah, you failed to ensure adequate security and crowd control particularly in the manner in which match officials and members of the visiting team were exposed to aggression and crowd violence perpetrated by your supporters”.
For this breach, the club were fined another N750, 000.
On the third count of the supporters encroachment on to the field of play and throwing objects towards the field of play immediately after the match in breach of Rule B13.18, Heartland were fined of N1,000,000.00.