Spain: Prosecutors close probe into racist soccer chants

MADRID (AP) — Spanish state prosecutors have closed a probe into the racist verbal abuse that Real Madrid player Vinícius Júnior was subjected to by rival fans after a derby against Atlético Madrid. The incident occurred on Sept. 18 when a large group of Atlético fans chanted “Vinícius, you are a monkey” outside Metropolitano Stadium before Madrid’s 2-1 win. But Spanish media reports that state prosecutors shelved the investigation for a lack of sufficient evidence to identify potential perpetrators of a hate crime. Esteban Ibarra, the president of the Movement Against Intolerance, Racism and Xenophobia who denounced the chants to the police, says the decision is “disturbing.”