LONDON (AP) — A 12-year-old boy was arrested by police after Crystal Palace player Wilfried Zaha highlighted racist abuse he received ahead of Sunday’s Premier League match at Aston Villa.
The racist messages and images referenced the Ivory Coast international being Black and showed the Ku Klux Klan. They were sent on Instagram from a user who referenced central England-based club Villa in their name.
“Woke up to this today,” Zaha posted on Twitter alongside screenshots.
“We were alerted to a series of racist messages sent to a footballer today and after looking into them and conducting checks, we have arrested a boy,” West Midlands Police said on Twitter.