Player faces charges after fight at Las Vegas soccer complex
A Las Vegas man is facing a battery charge after he and members of his soccer team allegedly attacked an off-duty police officer and broke a man’s nose Sunday during a fight at a soccer game.
Armando Herrera, 23, was arrested Sunday on one count of battery resulting in bodily harm, according to his arrest report.
The fight broke out after a Libertad Soccer League match at the Kellogg Zaher Soccer Complex, 7901 W. Washington Ave., near Durango Drive.
Metropolitan Police Department officer Jose Zavala-Alvarez and his brother, Richard Zavala, played in the game and their father, Jose Zavala-Sepulveda was there to watch.
According to Herrera’s arrest report, Zavala-Sepulveda was attacked after he tried to step in and stop an argument between Richard Zavala and members of the opposing team. More players joined in, and the argument turned into a brawl.
One of the men, wearing a jersey with the number 25, is accused of kicking Zavala-Sepulveda in the head, breaking his nose and knocking him out, the report states.
Zavala-Alvarez also tried to intervene and pull the players away from his father and brother, according to the report. He identified himself as a police officer and told the men to stop but they attacked him as well, kicking him in the face and chest.
He got away and managed to call police, and the fight broke up as officers arrived at the scene.
Zavala-Sepulveda was knocked out twice during the fight, according to the report, and will need surgery to repair the damage to his nose.
All three men identified the man in the number 25 jersey, Armando Herrera, as the man who kicked Zavala-Sepulveda in the face. Herrera, who was arrested after a traffic stop, told police that the other men were lying — he wasn’t involved in the fight and stood on the sidelines. Herrera’s girlfriend told police the same thing.
Herrera was released on bail, according to court documents, but is due in court on June 13. It’s unclear if any other players will face charges.
Contact Max Michor at mmichor@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0381. Follow @MaxMichor on Twitter.