Two Indonesian Match Officials Jailed over Deadly Football Stampede

People walk amongst debris in the stands at Kanjuruhan stadium days after a deadly stampede following a football match in Malang, East Java on October 3, 2022. (AFP)
People walk amongst debris in the stands at Kanjuruhan stadium days after a deadly stampede following a football match in Malang, East Java on October 3, 2022. (AFP)
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Two Indonesian Match Officials Jailed over Deadly Football Stampede

People walk amongst debris in the stands at Kanjuruhan stadium days after a deadly stampede following a football match in Malang, East Java on October 3, 2022. (AFP)
People walk amongst debris in the stands at Kanjuruhan stadium days after a deadly stampede following a football match in Malang, East Java on October 3, 2022. (AFP)

An Indonesian court handed prison sentences to two football match officials on Thursday after finding them guilty of negligence over one of the world's deadliest stadium stampedes.

The October 2022 derby match in Malang, East Java, between Arema FC and Persebaya Surabaya ended in chaos with 135 spectators killed, many crushed as they fled for exits after police fired tear gas into the crowd.

One match official, Abdul Haris, was found guilty "due to his negligence causing people to die and get severely injured", judge Abu Achmad Shiddqi Hamsya said at the court in Surabaya. He was sentenced to a year and a half in prison.

The judges also found security officer Suko Sutrisno guilty of negligence and jailed him for one year.

Both men worked for Arema FC, and have been banned from soccer-related activities for life by the country's football federation.

An investigation by Indonesia's human rights commission found the main cause of the stampede was police firing into the crowd 45 rounds of tear gas, which football's world governing body FIFA has banned as a crowd control measure.

Investigators also said the stadium was filled beyond capacity.

The lawyer for both match officials on Friday told Reuters they would not appeal the verdicts "as a form of moral responsibility" to the Arema FC fans and apologized to them.

One victim's father, 52-year-old Miftahuddin, said the verdicts were "lacking".

"How was that sentence so light?" he said, adding a tougher sentence would have given relief "to (his) daughter...who is in another realm".

Three police officers are also charged with the same offences and their cases will be decided at a later date.



No Premier League Clubs Charged with 2021-2024 PSR Breaches

Soccer Football - Premier League - Manchester City v Everton - Etihad Stadium, Manchester, Britain - December 31, 2022 General view of a Premier League branded ball inside the stadium before the match REUTERS/Phil Noble/File Photo
Soccer Football - Premier League - Manchester City v Everton - Etihad Stadium, Manchester, Britain - December 31, 2022 General view of a Premier League branded ball inside the stadium before the match REUTERS/Phil Noble/File Photo
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No Premier League Clubs Charged with 2021-2024 PSR Breaches

Soccer Football - Premier League - Manchester City v Everton - Etihad Stadium, Manchester, Britain - December 31, 2022 General view of a Premier League branded ball inside the stadium before the match REUTERS/Phil Noble/File Photo
Soccer Football - Premier League - Manchester City v Everton - Etihad Stadium, Manchester, Britain - December 31, 2022 General view of a Premier League branded ball inside the stadium before the match REUTERS/Phil Noble/File Photo

No English top-flight clubs have been charged for breaches of Profitability and Sustainability Rules (PSR) for the period 2021-2024 although Leicester City remain at risk pending the outcome of an ongoing legal case.

Clubs that had reported losses in the initial two years of the current three-year period were obligated to submit their accounts for the 2023-24 season to the Premier League by Dec. 31. Losses should not exceed 105 million pounds over a rolling three-year period, according to the league's PSR rules.

Everton and Nottingham Forest were both sanctioned last season for breaches of PSR rules and were docked eight and four points respectively.

Leicester, who were promoted last season from the Championship but are currently 19th in the table, avoided a points deduction against a charge in September relating to the three years until the end of the 2022-23 season, Reuters reported.

The club's appeal against the charge was upheld on the basis that an independent commission ruling on the case did not have jurisdiction because Leicester's accounting period ended when the club had already been relegated to the second tier.

"Issues as to the jurisdiction of the Premier League over Leicester City Football Club in relation to PSR compliance are currently the subject of confidential arbitration proceedings," the Premier League and Leicester said in a joint statement on Tuesday.

"Accordingly, neither the League nor the club will make any further comment at this stage about any aspect of the club's compliance or otherwise with any of the PSR or related Rules, save to say that no complaint has been brought against Leicester by the League for any breach of the PSRs for the period ending Season 2023/24."

No English top-flight clubs have been charged for breaches of Profitability and Sustainability Rules (PSR) for the period 2021-2024 although Leicester City remain at risk pending the outcome of an ongoing legal case.

Clubs that had reported losses in the initial two years of the current three-year period were obligated to submit their accounts for the 2023-24 season to the Premier League by Dec. 31. Losses should not exceed 105 million pounds over a rolling three-year period, according to the league's PSR rules.

Everton and Nottingham Forest were both sanctioned last season for breaches of PSR rules and were docked eight and four points respectively.

Leicester, who were promoted last season from the Championship but are currently 19th in the table, avoided a points deduction against a charge in September relating to the three years until the end of the 2022-23 season.

The club's appeal against the charge was upheld on the basis that an independent commission ruling on the case did not have jurisdiction because Leicester's accounting period ended when the club had already been relegated to the second tier.

"Issues as to the jurisdiction of the Premier League over Leicester City Football Club in relation to PSR compliance are currently the subject of confidential arbitration proceedings," the Premier League and Leicester said in a joint statement on Tuesday.

"Accordingly, neither the League nor the club will make any further comment at this stage about any aspect of the club's compliance or otherwise with any of the PSR or related Rules, save to say that no complaint has been brought against Leicester by the League for any breach of the PSRs for the period ending Season 2023/24."