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(LIP-wb) -- Pilar Mazzetti, Peruvian Minister of the Interior, said that club executives of Lima's soccer club "Universitario de Deportes" are responsible for the riots that erupted last Sunday during a game between Universitario and Sport Boys played at the club's "El Monumental" stadium.

In a press conference held on Thursday morning, Mazzetti said that Police is still in the process of identifying the instigating vandals and hooligans and she asked for witnesses to come forward and denounce the people in charge or provide information of their whereabouts.

Supported by the gathered evidence, she said the game which was arranged and organized by Universitario did not have the necessary guarantees for security. She also pointed out that that the people responsible could be punished with up to 12 years in prison for crimes of disturbing the peace and public calm.

Mazzetti announced that her Ministry has installed a free hotline (0-800-16016) for citizens who can offer any information on the violent events.

Accompanied by the president of the Peruvian Sports Institute (IPD), Arturo Woodman, she rebuffed accusations made by club officials who blamed the National Police for the lack of security inside the stadium.

According to Universitario officials, the club filed a request with Lima's public prosecutor's office two days before kickoff, asking for the provision of guarantees and safety measures for the match.

"It was only one day before the match when club officials asked for providing the necessary safety measures and they were told that it was too late for an arrangement. In addition, the game did not fall under the laws for a special event”, the Interior Minister responded. Nevertheless, 700 police troops were put in place to protect the field and stands and they acted to subdue the violent confrontation.

Even on Sunday, the actual match day, club officials again approached authorities again
asking for guarantees by Peru's National Institute of Civil defense (Indeci).

"At no time did the municipality grant their permission for the event and again the request was rejected”, maintained Mazzetti and assured that the people involved in making the arrangements knew that they were not going to obtain these guarantees.

Regarding the actual incidents that happened inside the stadium, Mazzetti denounced that the stadium's emergency escape doors were locked with chains and that the police had to cut them before they could start to evacuate people and to avoid an even greater tragedy.

The football match descended in to chaos as violence broke out between rival players and fans. The fighting began on the field as players from both teams pushed and kicked each other causing numerous red cards to be shown during the first half.

The match was billed as a 'friendly' game scheduled to give the players some practice and the fans some fun but as it wasn't an official fixture additional policing wasn't available to keep the peace.

The fighting broke out in the crowd just after the second half started with fans pummelling each other with reckless abandon and taunting each other through glass barriers. Additional police forces were rushed to the stadium and managed to contain the situation and luckily no-one was seriously injured or killed.

Mazzetti concluded her press conference by saying that in order to avoid repeated acts of violence at sporting events in the future, the police will demand that each spectator has to show their identification card at the entrance. Other preventive measures and guidelines will be installed as well.