A man who was previously arrested on suspicion of racially aggravated abuse towards Wigan Warriors forward Junior Nsemba has been released on police bail.
England international Nsemba was the victim of racially abusive comments made on social media shortly after Wigan Warriors beat St Helens in the final game of Super League Magic Weekend.
The comments that targeted Nsemba were quickly discovered and widely condemned with both Wigan and the RFL releasing statements to confirm that they had been in contact with the police about the communications.
Both Wigan and the RFL put their full support behind Nsemba with the wider sporting fan base doing the same.
It was then confirmed on July 10th that a 56-year-old man from the St Helens area had been arrested with that man now released on bail subject to further investigations, according to the St Helens Star.
The local paper reported that the man had been ‘bailed pending further inquiries’. No further statement has come from the Greater Manchester Police or the Wigan and Leigh Police since their initial confirmation of an arrest.
That statement had read: “Earlier this week, and following on from Super League Magic Weekend, Officers from Wigan’s Neighbourhood Team were made aware of an online incident where racist abuse was directed towards one of the players.
“Following an investigation into the matter and with the support of both Wigan Warriors and St Helens RLFC we were able to identify a male who we believe may be able to assist us with our enquiries.
“Shortly before 8am this morning (Friday 10 July 2026), officers from Wigan’s Neighbourhood Tasking Team arrested a 56-year-old male from the St Helens area on suspicion of a racially aggravated malicious communication offence. He currently remains in custody awaiting interview.
” GMP takes all instances of hate crime extremely seriously.”
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