Jesús Owono, goalkeeper for FC Andorra, has been sanctioned with a suspension of twelve matches by the Royal Spanish Football Federation (RFEF) for the incident he carried out during the match against CD Tenerife and which preceded the death of forward Jesús de Miguel. This Friday, November 13, the Disciplinary Committee announced the maximum punishment provided for by the federative regulations, after analyzing the referees’ report from the match played last November 2 at the Heliodoro Rodríguez López stadium. However, the consequences of the incident could go beyond the sporting sphere, since the National Police and the Justice system are maintaining an open investigation to clarify the circumstances surrounding the player’s death.
The Equatoguinean goalkeeper was sent off with a direct red card after striking De Miguel with his leg raised high while both were contesting a ball. The 30-year-old forward suffered a cardiorespiratory arrest and had to receive urgent medical attention on the pitch before being taken to the Hospital Universitario Nuestra Señora de La Candelaria, where he died during the morning of 3 November. The tragedy shocked Spanish football and opened two different avenues for determining the consequences of what happened: the disciplinary route, which has already concluded with a suspension of twelve matches, and the judicial route, which still must determine whether any criminal responsibility exists.
The RFEF imposes the maximum penalty on Owono: twelve matches of suspension
The Disciplinary Committee of the Federation has applied the article 102 of the Disciplinary Code, which provides for sanctions of between four and twelve matches when a footballer acts in a violent manner against an opponent during play and causes seriously injurious consequences.
In its decision, the body relies on the report of the referee Manuel Ángel Pérez Hernández, who sent off the goalkeeper for "brusquely impacting an opponent with his leg raised high using excessive force when the ball was in dispute". This description has been decisive in justifying the seriousness of the infringement and in establishing the suspension at its maximum level.
The RFEF considers especially relevant the elevated position of the leg, the brusqueness of the impact, and the use of a force that the referee described as excessive. It has also taken into account the consequences of the action, including the medical attention the forward required and his subsequent death.
The Committee holds that the facts constitute "a serious infringement classified in Article 102 of the Disciplinary Code", whose particular gravity justifies the twelve matches of suspension. The resolution also provides for ancillary financial fines set out in Article 52 of the regulations.
However, the Federation specifies that twelve matches constitute the maximum punishment it can impose for the infringement assessed, regardless of the tragic outcome. The sporting sanction does not, by itself, determine whether the goalkeeper committed an offense.
Can Jesús Owono go to jail for the death of the Tenerife forward?
The main uncertainty is now in the judicial sphere. The National Police opened an ex officio investigation into the death of Jesús de Miguel and the case was placed under judicial supervision, while the Prosecutor's Office of Santa Cruz de Tenerife initiated preliminary proceedings to examine the circumstances of what happened.
The opening of these proceedings is standard when a non-natural death occurs and does not mean that Owono has been declared guilty or that he will necessarily be prosecuted. Investigators will have to determine how the impact occurred, what relationship it had to the death, and whether the goalkeeper’s conduct could have criminal relevance.
The article 142 of the Criminal Code sets out sentences of one to four years of imprisonment for cases of homicide by grave imprudence. If the conduct were classified as less grave imprudence, the law provides for a fine of between three and eighteen months, with no prison sentence for that criminal offense.
However, to reach a conviction it would not be enough to show that the entry was dangerous or that it ended up having deadly consequences. It would be necessary to establish that the goalkeeper’s behavior constituted imprudence that is criminally relevant, that it exceeded the risks inherent to sporting practice, and that there is a legally imputable causal relationship between his actions and the death.
Therefore, although a possible conviction for grave imprudent homicide could entail prison, there is currently no criminal judgment against Owono and it also cannot be assumed that the proceedings will end in a trial.
The Prosecutor's Office considers it difficult for the investigation to end in a criminal process
The possibility of a conviction must be analyzed taking into account the characteristics of football, a contact sport in which serious injuries can occur during playing actions without necessarily there being a crime.
In statements collected by the Agencia EFE, the chief prosecutor of Santa Cruz de Tenerife, José Luis Sánchez-Jáuregui, considered "very difficult" that the death of Jesús de Miguel would end up leading to a criminal proceeding against the goalkeeper. The representative of the Public Prosecutor's Office noted that the collision occurred while the ball was in dispute, a circumstance relevant when differentiating a punishable sporting action from criminal conduct.
The assessment by the Prosecutor's Office does not mean that the investigations are closed, but reflects the legal difficulties of assigning criminal responsibility for an incident that occurred during a competition. A challenge punished with a red card or with multiple matches of suspension does not automatically become a crime, even when its consequences are especially serious.
The judicial investigation will have to examine the available evidence, medical reports, and the specific circumstances of the collision. Only from those elements will it be possible to determine whether it is appropriate to continue with criminal proceedings or to archive the case.
Owono remains away from training after the tragedy
While the possible judicial consequences are being clarified, Jesús Owono continues to stay away from training with FC Andorra, with no announced date for his return to competition. Since the death of Jesús de Miguel, the goalkeeper has remained with his closest circle, while the club has conveyed its support to him.
The coach of the Andorran team, Carles Manso, explained this week that the player’s situation is especially delicate and called for respect for his privacy. The manager also denied that there is a definitive decision about a possible retirement, after the speculation that arose about the goalkeeper’s sporting future.
Owono, an international player with Equatorial Guinea, also missed the commitments scheduled with his national team. The goalkeeper has publicly expressed his pain over De Miguel’s death and has stated his wish to be able to speak with the family of the deceased forward.
The sanction of twelve matches closes, for now, the disciplinary chapter of the case, but not the investigation into the circumstances of the death of the Tenerife player. Justice will have to determine whether what happened was a tragic sporting accident or whether there was negligence with criminal consequences. Until then, the possibility of a prison sentence will continue to be only a hypothetical legal scenario, not an established responsibility.