The house of Sierra Leone star player Kei Kamara has been under police protection after the player missed a penalty against Equatorial Guinea at the Africa Cup of Nations in Cameroon which saw them leave the tournament.
Kei Kamara’s house is in Freetown and the house has been a major target after Sierra Leone lost the game in Limbe 1-0, putting them out of the tournament. The penalty Kamara missed would likely have secured a place for them in the round of 16 but the player missed the penalty and made them leave the tournament.
Sierra Leone police deputy head of media told reported through a statement saying: “I can confirm that police are still deployed in Kei Kamara’s house to protect it from disgruntled youths who are not happy because he missed a penalty against Equatorial Guinea.”
The statement also said: “The Sierra Leone police – as an institution that’s very proactive in its approach got intelligence indicating that angry youths wanted to attack his house and we decided to go to the house even before the match ended.”
The police said they remembered what happened to Umaru Bangura a few years back, because of that they decided to be proactive and secure the player’s house. This was a reference to the team’s captain, whose house was pelted with stones after he also missed a penalty in critical circumstances, this time in stoppage time during a World Cup qualifier against Liberia.
The police also said that “no harm was done” to Kamara’s house and the “youths in the area are cooperating with us.” The former Norwich City and Middlesbrough player are yet to comment on the police deployment.