Notts County have said they will issue a lifetime ban to a man who allegedly made a racially aggravated comment to Barnet player Rob Hall during the Magpies' 6-1 win on Tuesday night.
The incident occurred in front of the Kop end as the Bees prepared to take a corner which led to the game being temporarily delayed by the referee.
The alleged remark was reported by Hall leading to the match official informing both managers and the senior tunnel steward.
The fan was identified by a number of home supporters and subsequently removed from the stadium.
Nottinghamshire Police has since confirmed a man has been arrested on suspicion of a racially aggravated public order offence after he handed himself in.
A statement from Notts read: "A man who made a racially aggravated comment towards a Barnet player in last night’s Vanarama National League fixture at Meadow Lane will receive a lifetime ban from attending future Notts County matches.
"The incident, which occurred in the 41 st minute of the match, was reported by the player to the match officials who halted play to inform both managers and the senior tunnel steward.
"Additional stewards were immediately deployed to the area from which the comment was made and the offender was quickly identified by a number of home supporters. He was then removed from the crowd by stewards.
"The man’s details were taken and verified by the club’s safety officer and immediately passed to police. He handed himself in to police a short time later and was arrested on suspicion of a racially aggravated public order offence.
"Nottinghamshire Police have confirmed that investigations are ongoing with a view to achieving a community resolution which will recognise the severity of the behaviour by the individual and educate the offender.
"Notts County, meanwhile, have banned the man from attending their future matches."
Notts' chief executive Jason Turner said: “On behalf of the club I would like to thank the many supporters who helped us quickly identify this individual, along with our safety team and stewards for their prompt and professional handling of the situation.
“Our records suggest the man is not a regular attendee at our matches and we are pleased that this isolated incident has been dealt with swiftly.
“The actions we have taken demonstrate our zero-tolerance policy towards any form of discrimination and, while reports of these incidents are incredibly rare at Meadow Lane, we would encourage all supporters to report any comments or behaviours of concern at future matches to their nearest steward as quickly as possible.
“We also offer an anonymous matchday text message service, details of which are shared on our scoreboards and via our PA system at every home match.”
Detective Inspector Marcus Oldroyd, of Nottinghamshire Police, said: “Police were made aware of an allegation of racist abuse which led to a man being ejected from the ground at the Notts County match.
"A man handed himself in to police a short time later. He was arrested and has since been questioned. Our investigation into the incident continues with a view to achieving a community resolution, which will recognise the severity of the behaviour by the individual and educate the offender, while considering the wishes of the victim.
"There is no place for racism or any kind of hate in Nottinghamshire and any allegations of hate related abuse will be investigated. We understand the impacts of these types of offences on victims who will be provided support.
In a statement, Barnet FC said: "We would like to thank Nottinghamshire Police and Notts County for their handling of the incident thus far and also extend our thanks to the Notts County players, staff and fans who offered their support to Rob Hall.
"The club has today been in contact with Kick It Out regarding the incident and has also reached out to Rob to ensure he is ok. We are here to fully support Rob and any of our players and staff affected by the incident."
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