Football
Adriana Garcia 5y

River Plate fan filmed taping flares to child before Copa Libertadores final arrested

A woman who taped flares underneath the clothes of a child in an attempt to smuggle them into Argentina's Estadio Monumental for the Copa Libertadores final second leg between River Plate and Boca Juniors on Saturday has been arrested.

A video showed a woman fastening flares to the child's body with white duct tape, with both individuals wearing River jerseys.

The images were shared on social media and police, using specialised software, reviewed social network activity in detail to identify the woman and arrest her.

"The Buenos Aires prosecutors' office have arrested a person involved in relation to the images that were broadcast Saturday, in which a woman was seen placing several pyrotechnic objects on the torso of a minor, with the aim of getting them into the River Plate stadium," Buenos Aires authorities announced on Twitter.

The woman could face two-to-six years in prison for breaching article 106 of the country's penal code, which refers to putting someone's life in danger -- and the punishment could be even more severe if she is found to be the child's mother.

The Copa Libertadores second leg had been scheduled to be played on Saturday but was postponed after crowd violence before the match left some Boca players and other people injured. It was postponed a second time on Sunday, as it was determined the playing conditions were not equal.

The two sides drew 2-2 in the first meeting on Nov. 11. 

CONMEBOL, South America's governing football body, is expected to determine on Tuesday the date and venue for the return leg. 

Alejandro Dominguez, president of CONMEBOL, said on Monday in an open letter that "all of South American football prioritize and join forces in identifiying, understanding and combating the causes and acts of violence that stain our sport."

"There is much more than a championship at play. Either all actors of South American football unite to remove violence, or violence will finish [the sport]," the letter said. 

In 2015, CONMEBOL disqualified Boca in the round of 16 of the tournament after River players were attacked with pepper spray on the pitch of Boca's La Bombonera stadium.

"Any sanction different from the one applied to Boca would bring a clear and unfair discrepancy," Boca wrote to CONMEBOL on Monday.

Boca has threatened to take the case to the Court of Arbitration for Sport if River is not sanctioned. River President Rodolfo D'Onofrio said his club can't be blamed for public security breaches, and accused his Boca counterpart Daniel Angelici of breaking his word after promising to play.

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