Police Scotland have confirmed the arrest of a 19-year-old man in connection with the leak of personal details belonging to referee John Beaton, following the penalty controversy during this week's Celtic versus Motherwell match.
The man was arrested on Friday evening on suspicion of data protection offences, according to a Police Scotland spokesperson who stated: 'Officers investigating a complaint of personal information being shared online relating to a Scottish football official have arrested a 19-year-old man in connection with a data protection offence. Inquiries are continuing.'
Background to the incident
The controversy stems from Beaton's decision to penalise Motherwell midfielder Sam Nicholson for handball during stoppage time, following a VAR review. This decision allowed Celtic to reduce the gap on William Hill Premiership leaders Hearts to just one point ahead of Saturday's title decider.
The decision has faced widespread criticism both in Scotland and internationally. The Foundation of Hearts, the majority shareholder of the league leaders, expressed concerns regarding refereeing decisions during the title run-in.
Police surveillance for referee and family
The Scottish Football Association (SFA) revealed that Beaton and his family spent Thursday night under police surveillance at their home, following the leak of personal details online. The SFA condemned attempts to compromise the safety of match officials, stating: 'Such vigilantism, motivated by decisions perceived to be right or wrong on a field of play, is a scourge on our national game and we are grateful to Police Scotland for their swift intervention.'
The SFA further emphasised that this incident is not isolated, highlighting that match officials have faced numerous harmful situations, with individuals often fearing to speak out. The governing body declared: 'We will not allow this to become the norm. We will not allow a situation where match officials require special provision to protect their children at school to be considered an occupational hazard.'
This is not the first time Beaton's family life has been affected by football-related incidents. In December 2018, three men were sentenced for abusive phone messages directed at Beaton after he refereed a Rangers win over Celtic, during which his performance was scrutinised following television footage showing several incidents involving Rangers striker Alfredo Morelos that went unpunished.
