Police investigating racist and abusive social media messages sent to England footballer Jess Carter have arrested a second man.
The messages, described as “vile” and “appalling”, were sent to the defender during the Women’s Euros in July.
They sparked an investigation by the UK Football Policing Unit (UKFPU), working in partnership with social media companies, to identify the people responsible.
Derbyshire Constabulary arrested a 30-year-old man from Ripley on Tuesday on suspicion of malicious communications. He has since been released on bail.
It follows the arrest of a 59-year-old man from Great Harwood by Lancashire Police in August, also on suspicion of malicious communication, as part of the same investigation.
The 27-year-old, who has 49 England caps, announced as a result of the messages that she would be “taking a step back from social media”.
In an Instagram post, the player said throughout the tournament she had experienced “a lot of racial abuse”.
She added: “Whilst I feel every fan is entitled to their opinion on performance and result, I don’t agree or think it’s ok to target someone’s appearance or race.”
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Cheshire Constabulary Chief Constable Mark Roberts, the National Police Chief Council lead for football policing, said: “Nobody should be subjected to such disgusting abuse, and we want to make it clear that racist abuse of this nature will not be tolerated.
“Everyone is responsible for what they do and say, and we want to ensure offenders cannot hide behind a social media profile to post vile comments.”
Sergeant Gemma Thursfield, from Derbyshire Constabulary, said: “Abuse online is no different to being in person and people need to be clear that the posts they make, or messages they send, on social media are just the same as making them in person.
“The impact on Jess, and other victims of this crime, are clear to see and we will work with our partners in law enforcement to ensure that those responsible are brought to justice.”
