Wolves fan who made homophobic gestures at football match slapped with hefty fine
A Wolves fan has been fined for homophobic behaviour at a match (Catherine Ivill/Getty Images)
A Wolves fan has been fined for making homophobic gestures at a football match last year.
The Wolverhampton Wanderers fan was spotted making the gestures during the Premier League home game at Molineaux against Brighton & Hove Albion on 5 November.
Appearing before Dudley Magistrates’ Court, 28-year-old Jake Moyses, of Grange Road, Penkridge, was fined £1,213 after pleading guilty to an offence of using threatening abusive words aggravated due to sexual orientation by making homophobic comments.
He was also ordered to pay costs of £125 and a victim’s surcharge of £50, the Express and Star reported.
The fine was increased by the court due to the homophobic element of the offence.
Wolves fans have appeared before magistrates’ before
This is not the first time a fan of the club has appeared before the courts for homophobic behaviour.
Earlier this month, a Wolves supporter was arrested at the club’s Carabao Cup quarter final clash with Nottingham Forest.
Information shared online by Nottinghamshire police officer PC Simon Travell, who who runs the Notts Police Football Twitter account – wrote of the 11 January 11 arrest: “Following homophobic abuse reported to police at tonight’s game, we have worked closely with the club and an arrest has been made from the away section – once again thank you to the club for their support in this matter.”
In November 2021, another Wolves fan – 31-year-old Jamie Arnold – was fined £340 and banned from matches for three years after shouting abuse at a referee.
During the hearing, Walsall Magistrates’ Court heard that Arnold shouted homophobic abuse at referee Mike Dean as the club took on Manchester United.
Arnold, from Stone in Staffordshire, was given a Football Banning Order which means he can’t attend any match in the UK for three years.
Homophobic chants, language and behaviours have been under the spotlight in recent months, as the FA cracks down on offensive actions by supporters.
The “Chelsea rent boy” chant is a common one which has been heard from the stands regularly at matches across the country in recent decades.
Last year, the Crown Prosecution Service confirmed that it would treat the “vile and disgusting” chant as a hate crime.
On 11 January, the FA said it “strongly condemns all offensive, abusive and discriminatory chanting” and is “determined” to stamp the behaviour out, noting the “lasting and damaging” impact abusive language can have.
In a statement, the governing body said: “The FA has formally written to all clubs across the Premier League, EFL, National League, Women’s Super League, Women’s Championship and Steps 2-4, to remind them that it can pursue formal disciplinary action against any club whose supporters engage in discriminatory behaviour, the use of the term ‘rent boy’.
The statement continued: “This important step follows the recent successful prosecution of an individual by the Crown Prosecution Service for homophobic abuse, specifically relating to the term ‘rent boy’.”
