Former FIFA official gets 9-year jail term for bribery

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A former top soccer official in South America has been sentenced to nine years in prison by a US judge on Wednesday in the sweeping FIFA corruption scandal.

Juan Angel Napout, 60, was sentenced in Brooklyn, New York, and ordered to pay more than 4.3 million US dollars in financial penalties.

“Napout’s conviction, as well as the successful prosecution of other high-level soccer officials, has struck at the core of corruption in soccer and underscores the need for continued vigilance against fraud and bribery in the sport,” according to a statement from the office of US Attorney Richard Donoghue.

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Napout had served as the head of the national soccer federation in his native Paraguay and, later, of South American football confederation CONMEBOL.

He was found guilty by a jury last December of racketeering conspiracy and wire fraud conspiracy.

The sentencing came just a week after the former boss of Brazilian soccer, Jose Maria Marin, was jailed for four years in connection with the same case.

A third defendant at the trial, former Peruvian soccer official Manuel Burga, was cleared of all charges.

The three men are the only defendants so far to go to trial out of more than 40 people and entities charged by US prosecutors since 2015 in connection with the corruption scandal surrounding FIFA, soccer’s world governing body.

At least 24 others have pleaded guilty.

Prosecutors have described a sprawling scheme involving payments of more than 200 million US dollars of bribes and kickbacks in exchange for marketing and broadcast rights for soccer matches.

The prosecutors said that Marin and Napout each personally took millions of dollars in bribes.

Source(s): Reuters