Italian soccer game postponed after police kill fan

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Italian soccer game postponed after police kill fan

ROME -- A police officer accidentally shot a soccer fan to death Sunday while trying to break up a fight at a highway rest stop in Tuscany between supporters of rival teams, authorities said.

Arezzo Police Chief Vincenzo Giacobbe said a "tragic error" occurred when the officer tried to intervene in a scuffle between two groups of people.

The victim was identified as Gabriele Sandri, 26, a DJ from Rome and a fan of the Rome soccer team Lazio who had been traveling to the northern city of Milan for Lazio's game against rival Inter Milan.

He was fatally shot at the rest stop near Arezzo, about 125 miles north of Rome, police spokesman Saverio Cialdea said.

"I express deep sorrow and sincere condolences to the family of the victim," Giacobbe said.

Prime Minister Romano Prodi, attending Mass when he was informed by Italy's interior minister about the death, called the fan violence "very worrisome."

The Italian soccer federation postponed the Inter-Lazio game to a date to be determined. Sunday's other games were to start 10 minutes late, with players and referees wearing black armbands.

Sky TG24 TV quoted witnesses as saying the other group comprised fans of the Turin team Juventus who were traveling in two vans from Naples to Parma for the Parma-Juventus match.

Clashes between rival fans at rest stops are common in Italy.

The shooting near Arezzo prompted clashes between fans and police in Bergamo, where AC Milan was playing Atalanta. The match was stopped after seven minutes when Atalanta fans tried to break through a barrier and storm the field.

Last season, a policeman was killed in riots following a game between Palermo and Catania in Sicily. Under new anti-violence measures this season, some fans have been barred from traveling to games.

In 2004, a game between two teams -- Roma and Lazio -- was suspended three minutes into the second half when a false rumor that police had killed a boy outside sparked riots.