Glen Kamara lawyer reacts to Ondrej Kudela update as Slavia-Rangers racism case referred to procurator fiscal

Police have reported Ondrej Kudela to Scotland's prosecution service after investigating claims of racist abuse against Rangers player Glen Kamara.
Rangers' Glen Kamara and Slavia's Ondrej Kudela clash during the Europa League tie at Ibrox on March 18 (Photo by Alan Harvey / SNS Group)Rangers' Glen Kamara and Slavia's Ondrej Kudela clash during the Europa League tie at Ibrox on March 18 (Photo by Alan Harvey / SNS Group)
Rangers' Glen Kamara and Slavia's Ondrej Kudela clash during the Europa League tie at Ibrox on March 18 (Photo by Alan Harvey / SNS Group)

A case of "racially aggravated conduct" against the Slavia Prague defender has been submitted to the Procurator Fiscal after the 33-year-old Czech was accused of shouting a discriminatory slur into Kamara's ear during last month's Europa League clash at Ibrox.

If convicted, Kudela - who has already been handed a 10-game ban by European football's governing body UEFA but denies the allegation of racist abuse - faces up to six months in prison.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

Kamara has also been reported to prosecutors over an allegation that he punched the Slavia centre-back in the Ibrox tunnel after the match.

A Police Scotland spokesperson said: "A report has been sent to the Procurator Fiscal following enquiries into alleged racial abuse and a reported assault at the match between Rangers and Slavia Prague at Ibrox on Thursday, March 18 2021."

Kamara's lawyer Aamer Anwar said: "It is disappointing that to date Mr Kudela has failed to co-operate with Police Scotland, has not attended any police interviews, and has failed to provide a full statement to Police Scotland.

"We would strongly urge Mr Kudela to co-operate with officers carrying out their investigations into his alleged criminal conduct.

"Conversely, Glen Kamara has fully co-operated with Police Scotland and provided a statement to officers at my offices on Friday, April 9."

Anwar added on Thursday: "Yesterday UEFA found Ondrej Kudela guilty of the charge of racist behaviour.

"While there was disappointment with the bare-minimum 10-game ban which was imposed upon Kudela, Glen felt vindicated by UEFA's judgement, and hopes that real lessons are learned, not just by Kudela, but also by his club Slavia Prague and their fans.

"Glen also hopes that, if Slavia Prague are genuine in wishing to eradicate racism, then they will take all appropriate steps to publicly call out the racist abuse that he is still being subjected to by some of their fans.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

"Glen wants to thank the Rangers fans, but also the wider football community, for the overwhelming support they have given him. As proceedings are now live, it would be inappropriate to comment further."

A message from the Editor:

Get a year of unlimited access to all The Scotsman's sport coverage without the need for a full subscription. Expert analysis of the biggest games, exclusive interviews, live blogs, transfer news and 70 per cent fewer ads on Scotsman.com - all for less than £1 a week. Subscribe to us today