Maguire jailed after holiday brawl
England defender held for a second night on Greek island Manchester United captain accused of fighting with police
England defender Harry Maguire spent his second night in a police cell last night after police accused him and two others of brawling with officers following a confrontation with fellow English drinkers on the Greek island of Mykonos.
The Manchester United captain was said to be facing a worst-casescenario of a two-year prison term if prosecutors reviewing his arrest pursue a charge today of aggravated assault.
United have pledged to establish the circumstances around the arrest after local police claimed Maguire and two others had committed “attempted assault against officers, insubordination, bodily harm, revilement and attempted bribery”. The bribery offence was said to relate to one of the two other men who were arrested with him in the early hours. Maguire was with Marcus Rashford and Brandon Williams during the day on the island that has been a popular postseason break for Premier League footballers, but his team-mates were not involved in the alleged assault later that evening. The Daily Telegraph understands a confrontation escalated when two strangers started shouting outside a van in which Maguire and two friends were sitting. When the three got out of the vehicle, sources said violence ensued before police broke up the fight and then allegedly came under attack.
“The policemen that intervened were secret police, in plain clothes, so it is possible that Maguire and his
friends did not understand that they were police officers,” one source close to the investigation claimed. “One of the men allegedly attempted to bribe the police when they were taken in the precinct.”
Lawyers representing Maguire will this weekend try to clear his name as they scramble to avoid question marks being raised over the £190,000-a-week player’s immediate future with the England set-up. Maguire is in Gareth Southgate’s leadership group of senior players who come together to make decisions while on international duty.
United, meanwhile, made contact with Maguire yesterday morning and say the England centre-back is “fully cooperating” with police.
Sources in Mykonos say Maguire has already denied some of the allegations against him.
When asked about the arrest, police said in a statement sent to
The Telegraph that “three foreigners” had “attacked and traumatised police officers in Mykonos”.
“Three foreigners aged 27, 28 and 29 were arrested by officers of the Police Department of Mykonos and an ‘in flagrante’ case has been made against them regarding attempted assault against officers, insubordination, bodily harm, revilement and attempted bribery,” the statement said. “Specifically, during early morning hours, patrolling policemen in an area of Mykonos intervened and smoothed a conflict between citizens, but three foreigners involved in the incident turned against them, swearing and punching a policeman. The three foreigners were taken to the Police Department of Mykonos, where during their arrival, they resisted arrest, pushing and hitting three policemen. Afterwards, one of the detainees attempted to offer money so that the process against them is not completed.”
Earlier on Thursday, Maguire had been at a pool party with Rashford, 22, Williams, 19, as well Chris Hughes, 27, a reality TV contestant, and snooker player Judd Trump, 31, as well as his brother Joe Maguire.
Police refused to state whether any of that group were with Maguire later. Prosecutors, meanwhile, are likely to make a decision by lunchtime over the charges against Maguire, who was last night taken into Syros police station by plainclothes officers after an hour-long ferry crossing.
United have been trying to find out whether there is substance to claims police were “insulted” and struck when they confronted the group Maguire was socialising with during his summer holiday.
“The club is aware of an alleged incident involving Harry Maguire in Mykonos,” read a statement from United. “Contact has been made with Harry, and he is fully cooperating with the Greek authorities. At this time we will be making no further comment.”
Mykonos has been a favoured destination of footballers during the small gap between seasons, with no restrictions yet on quarantine on return to the UK to prevent the spread of Covid-19. Its popularity has been credited to Andreas Brozos relocating to the island after years running the Panacea nightclub in Manchester, which players often frequented. Some United players headed there after their defeat in the Europa League semifinal to Sevilla. Jesse Lingard was also said to be among the players relaxing on the island after an extended season which was disrupted by the pandemic.
Maguire’s partner Fern Hawkins posted a picture on social media of them together in a bar on Thursday evening, captioned ‘Holidays with you’. The couple have two children together. The Proto Thema newspaper first reported the story of the arrest and their website showed video footage of Maguire mixing with people in a Mykonos bar. He posed with fans for selfies and it was reported that his name was chanted on the streets when he was spotted in Mykonos.
Paul Anast, a Greek legal expert and investigator, told The Daily Telegraph that many cases of this kind get thrown out, but he added: “If it was not an accident and it was an aggravated result, it could be two years in jail. But if you are sentenced, you can appeal and will be released immediately, which is the law for anything like this under two years. You can leave the country.”
Maguire was appointed United captain in January following Ashley Young’s departure to Inter Milan and he helped the club return to the Champions League with a victory on the final day of the season against Leicester City, who he joined United from for £85million a year ago.