Wednesday, 27 May 2015

FIFA Officials Held On $150m Corruption Charges

Seven top world football officials have been arrested in Switzerland over allegations they were involved in a racket involving bribes adding up to more than $150m (£96m).

Swiss authorities detained the officials - two FIFA vice presidents, three other senior FIFA officials and two high-ranking world football executives - in an early-morning operation in Zurich on suspicion of receiving and paying bribes.
The arrests were carried out in order to extradite the officials to the United States, the Swiss government said.
Swiss authorities have since raided FIFA's headquarters in the city, seizing documents, in a separate investigation and say they have opened criminal proceedings in connection with the allocation of the 2018 and 2022 World Cups to Russia and Qatar.
FIFA's spokesman has said that a planned congress and presidential election scheduled for this Friday will still go ahead, as will the 2018 and 2022 World Cups.
The arrests took place in response to a 47-count indictment charging 14 defendants with racketeering, wire fraud and money laundering conspiracies.

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