Back in the summer we reported on an incident that took place during an exhibition match in Miami between Real Madrid and Chelsea where a young soccer fan ran onto the field to hug his idol Cristiano Ronaldo.
It really was a touching moment as Ronaldo embraced his young admirer whose name is Ronald Gjoka, but unfortunately for the 20-year-old Miami college student law enforcement didn’t see it that way.
Gjoka spent some time in jail where he was treated like a celebrity and has had to face charges of disorderly conduct and trespassing. But according to a story via Yahoo! Sports, Gjoka has managed to escape punishment thanks to a timely intervention by his idol.
The Portugal striker personally intervened in the case of Ronald Gjoka, a Canadian who faced charges of disorderly conduct and trespassing after the incident in the second half of the International Champions Cup match between Real and Chelsea.
After learning of Gjoka’s legal predicament, Ronaldo wrote a letter to the prosecutor in the case appealing for the charges to be dropped.
“We are happy to announce the prosecutor today dropped the charges against our client in open court,” Richard Hujber, a lawyer for Gjoka, said on Monday.
“In particular, we thank Cristiano Ronaldo for all his assistance and consideration in this important matter involving a young college student with an extremely bright future.”
Gjoka, who attends Palm Beach State Community College, said he hoped to have a chance one day thank the star personally. “My dream now is just to see him again to say thanks,” he said.
I’m usually not in favor of fans invading the pitch but after seeing how much meeting Ronaldo meant to the kid I’m glad to hear the charges we dropped. We all have people out there that inspire us to be the best we can be and sometimes it’s impossible for us to meet them and thank them.
Just glad the judge had enough common sense to know the kid meant no harm.