A Turkish court on Tuesday ruled for the arrest of three people including Ankaragücü football club president Faruk Koca, who punched a referee at the end of a football match in Ankara on Monday evening, leading to a crisis in Turkish football, Justice Minister Yılmaz Tunç has announced.
Koca, a former lawmaker from the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP), knocked referee Halil Umut Meler to the ground with a punch to the face following Monday’s game, leaving the official with a black eye.
Koca and the two others who also hit the referee were arrested on charges of “injuring and threatening a public official” as part of an investigation launched by the Ankara West Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office, the minister announced on X, formerly known as Twitter.
Images of Monday night’s incident showed Koca rushing onto the pitch with a group of men and throwing a punch at referee Meler after he had blown the final whistle.
Koca appeared to be incensed at Meler for awarding a stoppage-time penalty kick that allowed visiting Çaykur Rizespor to leave the capital with a 1-1 draw.
Meler fell to the ground and then appeared to have been kicked several times in the ensuing melee.
The 37-year-old match official was shown standing minutes later with a black eye that had swelled up the left part of his face.
Three other suspects, who also rushed onto the pitch following the match, were identified and were released from police custody under judicial supervision, the minister said.
“An investigation is under way,” he added.
The incident, which sparked outrage, led to the suspension of the Turkish Super Lig indefinitely by the Turkish Football Federation (TFF).
Turkish media reports said Koca denied the accusations in court and said the incident took place due to the wrong decisions and provocative actions of the referee. He said his aim was to spit in the referee’s face and not to punch him. Koca, who was also briefly hospitalized after the melee due to heart problems, also said the punch he gave to the referee’s face was not strong enough to cause any fractures, claiming that Meler fell to the ground five seconds after getting hit.
Dr. Mehmet Yörübulut at the Acıbadem Ankara Hospital, where Meler is being treated, said on Tuesday that the referee has some bleeding around his left eye and a fracture due to the impact of the punch. He said there has been no damage to his brain and that he is likely to be discharged from the hospital Wednesday morning.
The referee, who spoke to police at the hospital, said Koca threatened to “finish him and the other referees on the pitch off” and said, “I will kill you,” in reference to Meler.
The referee said he was kicked many times after he fell to the ground following the punch, adding that he does not want to reconcile with any of the attackers and will file criminal complaints against them.
FIFA’s president, Gianni Infantino, said the events that took place after the match were “totally unacceptable and have no place in our sport or society.”
“Without match officials, there is no football,” he added.
Meler, who has been a FIFA referee since 2017, officiated Lazio’s Champions League group game with Celtic on November 28.
The incident pushed all other events off the front pages of the main newspapers in Turkey where football passions run deep — and are often politically linked.
Koca dismissed from AKP
Following the incident, the AKP referred Koca, who was also among the co-founders of the party, to its disciplinary board, demanding his dismissal from the party. The party’s Central Executive Board (MYK) decided to eject him from the party later on Tuesday.
Koca told one reporter earlier this year that he might consider running for mayor of Ankara as the AKP candidate in a closely watched municipal election scheduled for March 31.
“I know my name is mentioned in public opinion polls. I did not apply for candidacy. However, if asked, I wouldn’t say no,” Koca said.
“If I am entrusted with the task of being the metropolitan municipality mayor, I will do what’s necessary.”
Some social media users claimed that Koca’s close links to the AKP and the perception that his action will go unpunished gave him the courage to carry out such an attack on the referee before the cameras.
