Cyprus Police Arrest Football Fan Who Struck Player with Firecracker

Cyprus police announced the arrest of a 22-year-old man who threw a firecracker at a football player during a match. The match was interrupted after the firework hit the player.

As reported by the police press service, the incident occurred last Tuesday, January 16, in Larnaca during the Coca-Cola Cup match between "Nea Salamis" and "APOEL." Launched in the 51st minute from the stands, the firecracker fell near the midfielder of "Nea Salamis," Georgos Papageorgiou, who was warming up at the sideline at that moment.

Due to the explosion, the footballer fell to the ground, and the referee was forced to temporarily stop the game. It took half an hour to make a final decision. Ultimately, the match was completely halted with a score of 0:0.

According to local media, the player suffered a hearing injury to his right ear. He has already been discharged from the clinic. The responsible football fan was arrested the day before. The police confirmed that the arrest was related to the incident that occurred during the match.

It is expected that the man will be brought to the Larnaca District Court.