The Herald (no online content)
FOUR Manchester United fans spent Christmas Day behind bars in Italy despite a last-minute appeal hearing.
The men, who were jailed last Friday for their part in a fight with rival supporters, had hoped to be freed following an appeal tribunal which sat on Monday.
But they will have to wait until tomorrow to learn the result of their appeal, the Foreign Office said.
Kyle Dillon, 23, and Richard Wimmer, 39, were each jailed for two years and six months. Nicholas Lucas, 18, and Michael Burk, 35, were each jailed for two years and five months.
The four were arrested on December 12 after fighting broke out between Manchester United and AS Roma fans before the Champions League group game in the Italian capital.
The four were charged with violent behaviour and resisting arrest after skirmishes on the Duca d’Aosta bridge near the Stadio Olimpico, a wellknown hangout for Roma’s hardline supporters.
A Foreign Office spokeswoman said: “The judges presiding in this case met in Rome on December 24. The result of their deliberations will not be known before December 27. Their families have been informed.”
Relatives of Dillon are believed to be in Italy.
Italian media reports at the time suggested the four men were part of a group of around 60 supporters who broke away from an escort and made their own way to the stadium before hitting trouble.
It is believed the four men were known to police in England but were not subject to any football banning orders.
If the appeals tribunal does decide to release the men they will serve suspended sentences in the UK.
