Jesus Owono: Potential punishment, including jail term, awaiting African goalkeeper after death of Jesus de Miguel

Equatorial Guinea goalkeeper Jesus Owono is staring at a possible jail term following a collision that led to an opponent’s death in a match in Spain.

Tenerife forward Jesus de Miguel died on Tuesday from the effects of the collision during a Spanish second division match between his team and Andorra.

As Tenerife were chasing the game, trailing 2-0 in stoppage time, De Miguel went on the attack in a bid to score, but Andorra goalkeeper Owono came way off his line to close him down.

It led to a nasty collision between the two with Owono’s knee striking De Miguel on the chest. The goalkeeper received a straight red card while De Miguel was left lying on the pitch before medical personnel attended to him and the rushed him to hospital.

He died of a cardiac arrest on Tuesday and the spotlight has now turned to Owono.

The goalkeeper has been condemned for being negligent and reckless while he has been forced to delete his social media accounts following racist abuse.

Owono has since apologised but he faces a suspension from football and potentially, criminal charges, after Spanish police opened an inquiry into possible involuntary manslaughter.

“I feel devastated and I will carry this weight for the rest of my life,” Owono wrote in a statement while asking De Miguel’s family for forgiveness.

Following his sending off, Owono could be suspended to up to 12 matches. The Spanish Football Federation’s Disciplinary Code suggests a suspension of four to 12 matches for players found to have committed violent conduct during play, resulting in serious injury.

A probe into the events surrounding De Miguel’s death will assess the challenge and the context in which it was made before determining the punishment.

It does not end there, according to Al Jazeera, The Homicide Group of the National Police in Santa Cruz is already investigating the circumstances of De Miguel’s death.

“The question of charges is likely to be determined by whether Owono’s challenge meets the threshold of criminal negligence,” reports Al Jazeera.

“Article 142 of the Spanish Penal Code distinguishes between manslaughter due to gross negligence and manslaughter due to less serious negligence.”

If proven, gross negligence carries a prison sentence of up to four years, while the lesser charge carries a fine calculated over three to 18 months.