West Midlands Police have arrested a 12-year-old boy after Wilfried Zaha shared a racist post he had been sent on Instagram.
The Crystal Palace forward shared the disturbing post he received from an alleged Aston Villa fan, saying “Woke up to this today.”
The person in question wrote: “You better not score tomorrow, you black c***. Or I’ll come to your house dressed as a ghost.”
A number of images were also sent to Zaha, including one of the Ku Klux Klan in the middle of a ceremony.
A number of people have expressed their disgust at the post, with the Premier League tweeting: "This behaviour is completely unacceptable and the Premier League stands alongside @wilfriedzaha in opposing this, and discrimination in any form. There is #NoRoomForRacism, anywhere.”
Aston Villa also condemned the messages, saying: “We deplore the disgusting racist messages sent to @wilfriedzaha. We condemn all forms of racial discrimination and stand with @CPFC.
“We are working with the police in investigating this extremely serious matter and when the culprit is identified AVFC will issue a lifetime ban.”
West Midlands Police have now confirmed a 12-year-old boys has been arrested in connection to the incident, and has been taken to custody.
A post from the force on Twitter said: “We were alerted to a series of racist messages sent to a footballer today and after looking into them and conducting checks, we have arrested a boy.
“The 12-year-old from #Solihull has been taken to custody. Thanks to everyone who raised it. Racism won't be tolerated.”
