A 19-year-old man has been arrested after a complaint over referee John Beaton’s personal details being shared online, following his officiating of controversial Celtic’s 3-2 win over Motherwell on May 13, 2026.
“Officers investigating a complaint of personal information being shared online relating to a Scottish football official, have arrested a 19-year-old man in connection with a data protection offence.
Enquiries are continuing.” Scottish police said in a brief statement.
The leak stemmed from backlash to Beaton’s stoppage-time VAR-awarded penalty for handball to Celtic, which kept them one point behind league leaders Hearts in a tense title race.
Beaton and his family required police surveillance at home, with the Scottish FA condemning the incident as “vigilantism” driven by intense criticism from pundits, managers, and supporters.
“The Scottish FA condemns in the strongest possible terms attempts to compromise the safety of match officials. Such vigilantism, motivated by decisions perceived to be right or wrong on a field of play, is a scourge on our national game and we are grateful to Police Scotland for their swift intervention.
We are also clear, sadly, that this is the inevitable consequence of the heightening criticism, intolerance and scapegoating demonstrated this season by media pundits, supporters, official supporters’ groups, clubs, players, managers and former match officials.” the SFA said in an earlier statement.
The incidents stem from a fiercely contested, high-tension Scottish Premiership clash between Motherwell and Celtic at Fir Park on Wednesday, May 13, 2026.
With the score locked at 2-2 deep into stoppage time, Celtic’s Anthony Ralston launched a long throw-in into the Motherwell box. Sam Nicholson and Auston Trusty went up for the ball in an aerial battle. Nicholson headed it clear, but VAR official Andrew Dallas stepped in and flagged a possible handball against him.
Referee John Beaton went over to the pitchside monitor, reviewed the incident, and overturned his original call, awarding Celtic a controversial penalty in the 100th minute—one that many have slammed as “the worst VAR decision in history.”
Kelechi Iheanacho stepped up and slotted home the spot-kick, handing Celtic a dramatic 3-2 win.
That last-gasp penalty completely changed the shape of the title race. The victory left Celtic just one point behind league leaders Hearts, setting up a winner-takes-all showdown on the final day between the two sides at Celtic Park.
