Sevilla player Enrique Salas has been detained by police for allegedly earning yellow cards intentionally in order to fix sports betting results, LaLiga said Tuesday.
According to Spanish news agency EFE, police investigators suspect that Salas intentionally tried to be booked by referees to favor bets made by family members and friends in Spain.
The 22-year-old defender has received three yellow cards this season. He earned 10 last season in LaLiga, including seven in the last eight games of the season that he played in.
LaLiga told ESPN that it will ask to take part in any judicial investigation of the player as part of the prosecution.
Sevilla said they were aware of the detention and are monitoring the situation closely. Salas’ detention was first reported by online newspaper El Confidencial.
Information from ESPN’s Sam Marsden contributed to this report.