Pereira striker Luis Moreno said Tuesday he has received multiple death threats over the fatal kick he gave to the mascot owl of opponents Barranquilla during Sunday’s soccer match.
“Everything over the phone. And believe this is very hard for me and for my family in Panama who are afraid because of this,” Moreno told television reporters.
The soccer player’s mother also appeared on Colombian national television and expressed her concern about the anger the behavior of her son during Sunday’s match has caused.
“I am his mother. I am very worried. I know my son did that [kicking the owl], but not with the intention to kill the animal,” mother Alicia Moreno said tearfully.
According to Moreno, his children are worried their dad is going to jail because of the owl incident, but his daughter expressed anger about the reaction to her father’s behavior.
“Those f***king Colombians threw the animal [on to the field] to mess, but it bit them in the ass. Leave my dad in peace,” daughter Mari Ramos reportedly said on her Facebook page.
Colombian soccer officials are studying the possibility to sanction Moreno. According to Bogota radio station Santa Fe, current animal protection laws allow the player to be jailed for “one to three months and be fined between 5,000 to 50,000 pesos ($2.6 to $26).”