The referee was sanctioned for assaulting a workshop leader. He avoided the oral trial, but must donate 10 cans of maternal milk.
Referee Andrés Merlos was sanctioned judicially after a scandalous episode occurred in September 2024 At the Malvinas Argentinas Stadium in Mendoza, after the match between workshops and Boca for the Argentine Cup. The situation turned tense when, once the meeting was over, incidents were produced in the costume zone, which resulted in a criminal complaint against the Mendoza referee by the leadership of the Cordoba club.
Judge Leonardo Camacho decided to suspend The oral trial when homologating a probation agreement for Merloswho was charged with “Mild malicious injuries“Against Gustavo Gatti, vice president of workshops. According to the complaint, the referee would have taken a kick to the leader in the midst of a discussion after the party. This agreement avoided a major conviction, but did not exempt him from complying with a series of strict legal conditions.
As part of the probation, Merlos must comply with a series of measures for a period of twelve months. Among the conditions imposed are the prohibition of approaching the victim, the obligation to set domicile, the total abstention of alcohol or drug consumption, and the donation of ten cans of maternal milk to the Notti de Mendoza hospital. These demands are part of an alternative sanction that allows an oral prison sentence to be avoided, but entails a clear recognition of responsibility.
Fassi blow.webp
X: Andrés Fassi.
Despite avoiding the trial, the image of the referee was severely damaged, especially in the workshop surroundings, where his future designation in club matches generates strong questions. The reputation of Merlos as an authority within the playing field has been questioned, and this episode revives the debate on the behavior and responsibility of the referees outside the pitch.
The violent fact in Mendoza
The fact that triggered the cause took place on September 7after the defeat for workshops in front of Boca. The tension after the elimination resulted in an altercation in the changing rooms, where, according to the version of Gatti, was physically assaulted by Merlos. The complaint was formalized shortly after and was the beginning of a series of judicial and sports events that involved both the referee and the club’s leadership.
A few days later, the president of workshops, Andrés Fassi, He gave a press conference in which he accused Merlos of giving him a trumpeshowing a photo of his face hit as proof. However, due to this action, Fassi was suspended by the Argentine Football Association (AFA) for two years, although it later achieved a reduction in the sanction through the Deportivo Arbitration Court (TAS). Merlos, on the other hand, claimed to have been threatened by armed custodians linked to the leadership and said he acted in self -defense. Even so, justice considered that it should respond for its behavior, marking an unusual precedent in Argentine football.
Source: Ambito
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