Riot over death sentences in Egyptian soccer violence leaves 16 dead Fans of Al-Masry team run after players of the Al-Ahly team during riots that erupted after the football match between the two teams in Port Said, 220 kms northeast of Cairo, on February 1, 2012. At least 73 people were killed and hundreds injured in the violence that erupted as soon as the referee blew the final whistle in the match. UPI/Ahmed Gomaa PORT SAID, Egypt, Jan. 26 (UPI) -- At least 16 people were killed and more than 200 injured in rioting Saturday after an Egyptian court sentenced 21 soccer fans to death, officials said. Security forces fired tear gas to disperse the crowd as it used rocks and firearms in an attempt to break into the Port Said prison where most of the defendants were being held, Ahram Online reported. Two police officers were among the dead in the prison violence. A police dorm was looted and set on fire, while a police station and a television news minivan were also torched. Nine security officers and three officials of the al-Masry soccer club are among 73 defendants being tried in the deaths of 72 fans of the opposing al-Ahly team at a match in Port Said in February 2012. No Ahly fans were charged in the 2012 melee. The rest of the defendants will be sentenced March 9, al-Masry al-Youm reported. The violence at the soccer game began shortly after the match began when al-Masry fans invaded the pitch and threw rocks and fireworks at supporters of the visiting al-Ahly club, BBC reported. The soccer league was suspended following the game.