Fifa report into alleged corruption clears Qatar to host 2022 World Cup

[Jenks]

BREAKING: Swiss police arrest several top FIFA officials in Zurich on corruption charges, U.S. extradition planned.

 

[BerkeleyBernie]

BREAKING: Swiss police arrest several top FIFA officials in Zurich on corruption charges, U.S. extradition planned.

Here ya go:
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/05/27/sports/soccer/fifa-officials-face-corruption-charges-in-us.html

Can't wait to see John Oliver have another go at these criminal clowns on Last Week Tonight.

 

[Sumlit]

Apparently 14 officials in total are named in the indictments. Don't know how many they nabbed in Zurich, but looks like they nabbed at least 4 CONCACAF execs, Jeffrey Webb, Jack Warner, Eugenio Figueredo and Eduardo Li.

Might be the US Department of Justice is treating this as a RICO case, mafia style. Charges of conspiracy, corruption, racketeering, wire fraud, among others.

Yikes!

Edit: btw, that the Swiss are willing to cooperate in arresting and extraditing these people in their soil is very, very strong indicative of how much of a case the US DoJ has on them.

 

[Luftstalag14]

Amazing. I wonder what the US has on these FIFA officials? Did they use an American bank to launder the bribe money or something?

 

[BerkeleyBernie]

Quote from the NY Times article:

“We’re struck by just how long this went on for and how it touched nearly every part of what FIFA did,” said a law enforcement official. “It just seemed to permeate every element of the federation and was just their way of doing business. It seems like this corruption was institutionalized.”

 

[FCBarca]

Conveniently absent from the perp walk is none other than the head honcho himself, Blatter...Good fortune or merely a dictator who has consolidated power by offering up sacrificial lambs in exchange?

 

[UberNjufer]

So the Americans are the ones who can prosecute over international organizations,great.We can all sleep peacefully now.

 

[FCBarca]

So the Americans are the ones who can prosecute over international organizations,great.We can all sleep peacefully now.

Yanks want a piece of the pie they have little to do with

 

[Eetu]

Amazing. I wonder what the US has on these FIFA officials? Did they use an American bank to launder the bribe money or something?

From the statement by the Swiss:

According to the US request, these crimes were agreed and prepared in the US, and payments were carried out via US banks.

Edit. From NYT:

The indictment names 14 people on charges including racketeering, wire fraud and money laundering conspiracy. In addition to senior soccer officials, the indictment is also expected to name sports-marketing executives from the United States and South America who are accused of paying more than $150 million in bribes and kickbacks in exchange for media deals associated with major soccer tournaments, according to one government official briefed on the matter.

Oh, please have our Sandro in there somewhere too.

 

[FCBarca]

Moreover, no chance the Suisse authorities would hand over a Suisse national, even one as corrupt as Blatter, to the US

 

[Barcaman]

Probably one of the most corrupt international organizations in the world. And they sell us fair play and no to racism and whatnot like they are in position to teach anyone anything.

Worse than Mafia.

 

[FCBarca]

I don't think there's a fairytale ending in this story, corrupt organization will continue being corrupt - far too much money involved...Has the feel of a reshuffling of the deck rather than wholesale changes but we'll see

 

[StarLord]

Moreover, no chance the Suisse authorities would hand over a Suisse national, even one as corrupt as Blatter, to the US

I wouldn't be too sure of that. The US pushed and got concessions from Switzerland on several issues in recent years, such as taxation of US citizens deposits in Swiss banks, confidentiality and gold deposits as well. Switzerland can whistle merrily when some weak country asks for the money of its ex-dictator, but not when the US comes knocking. The US government is probably trying to create a precedent with this case, so that they can extradite people from Europe at their own leisure (something which in a more clandestine way they are already doing)

 

[FCBarca]

I wouldn't be too sure of that. The US pushed and got concessions from Switzerland on several issues in recent years, such as taxation of US citizens deposits in Swiss banks, confidentiality and gold deposits as well. Switzerland can whistle merrily when some weak country asks for the money of its ex-dictator, but not when the US comes knocking. The US government is probably trying to create a precedent with this case, so that they can extradite people from Europe at their own leisure (something which in a more clandestine way they are already doing)

Yet, my point stands...The Suisse aren't handing over their own citizens to a country that does not respect international law nevermind human rights, even one as corrupt as Blatter

 

[StarLord]

Yet, my point stands...The Suisse aren't handing over their own citizens to a country that does not respect international law nevermind human rights, even one as corrupt as Blatter

Well, maybe the won't extradite Blatter (maybe that is too high-profile) but with other individuals that the US may deem dangerous to its interests, I can assure you that Switzerland will budge every single time.