Soccer Player Kills Referee In Shooting Rampage After Receiving Red Card In Argentina

A soccer game played between neighbors in Argentina ended in bloodshed.

A player shot and killed a referee and wounded another player Sunday in the Campo de la Ribera area of Cordoboa, Argentina, according to The Mirror’s Rita Sobot.

Police say referee Cesar Flores, 48, showed the assailant a red card for making a heavy tackle on an opponent. The player, who is at large, then retrieved a gun from his bag and shot Flores three times. He also wounded another player, 25-year-old Walter Zarate, before fleeing the scene.

“It all happened during the match,” a police spokesman said. “We don’t know what happened with the referee but the player was angry and went to get his gun and killed him.”

The shooting appears to have taken place during an amateur game that the Argentina’s Football Federation might not have organized.

If so, this looks like a case of social problems in the South American nation spilling onto the field of play, with tragic consequences.

Thumbnail photo via Twitter/@FOXSportsArg