Italian man jailed for violent conduct against fan of Premier League club

A year after Liverpool fan, Sean Cox, had injuries inflicted on him ahead of last season’s UEFA Champions League semi-final between the Reds and AS Roma at Anfield, the erring fan, Simone Mastrelli, pleaded guilty to maliciously inflicting grievous bodily harm on the fan of the Reds, who went on to claim victory over Roma on aggregate in a high-scoring semi-final encounter.

Recall that last October, 21-year-old Roma fan Filippo Lombardi was cleared of inflicting grevious bodily harm on Cox but found guilty of violent disorder and sentenced to three years in jail. Meanwhile, 29-year-old Daniele Sciusco from Rome, admitted violent disorder and was jailed for two-and-a-half-years three months earlier. Mastrelli on his part entered a guilty plea at Preston Crown Court to unlawfully and maliciously inflicting grievous bodily harm on Cox, who spent four-and-a-half weeks in a specialist neurological unit at Liverpool’s Walton Centre following the attack.

The 53-year-old was then transferred to Beaumont Hospital in Dublin and continues his recovery from serious catastrophic head injuries at Ireland’s National Rehabilitation Hospital in Dun Laoghaire. But the Roma fan pleaded not guilty to a separate count of violent disorder, which will lie on file after the court accepted his plea. Detective Inspector of Merseyside Police Paul Speight said: “The shocking and completely unprovoked assault of Sean Cox was rightly met with disgust and abhorrence by people in Merseyside and across the world.”

DI Speight added: “As a passionate Liverpool fan, Sean had travelled to the city to enjoy the occasion of a Champions League match. But before he had even had opportunity to enter the stadium, Sean was brutally attacked by Simone Mastrelli… I want to take this opportunity to thank the team of detectives who investigated the attack, as well as the authorities in Italy who assisted the apprehension and extradition of Mastrelli so he could face justice today.”

The police detective went on to urge for a peaceful atmosphere for football fans to watch their favourite teams: “Football fans should be able to attend matches without fear of being subjected to such a vicious attack, and I hope today’s sentencing sends a clear message that anyone who seeks to bring violence to a sporting event will face the full force of the law. The fact that Mastrelli left the country after the assault in a failed bid to evade justice has only prolonged the anguish for his Sean and his family.”