Conmebol hails justice progress in FIFAGate scandal | OneFootball

The South American Football Confederation issued a formal statement this Friday, outlining its position regarding the investigations taking place in Paraguay in the context of the FIFAGate scandal.

The regional governing body highlighted “clear rules” as a fundamental pillar internally and emphasized its status as “the only football organization worldwide to initiate a forensic audit” after falling victim to the actions of its own leaders. The complaint against Nicolás Leoz’s administration resulted in the recovery of over US$130,000,000 for the organization.

CONMEBOL stated that, as a result of this audit, “behaviors that caused financial harm to the institution and illicit benefits for the perpetrators” were detected, and that the CONMEBOL Congress acted accordingly by “carrying out all actions aimed at recovering funds and continuing the investigations.”

The first criminal complaint was filed in 2017, and a second took place in 2021. “Last week, the Public Prosecutor’s Office of the Republic of Paraguay presented conclusions that confirm the reported facts. The Judiciary of the Republic of Paraguay stated that these conclusions meet all legal requirements for the advancement of criminal prosecution,” the organization revealed.

“As a consequence of the investigations and due to the strength of the existing evidence, several individuals, including executives of Banco Atlas SA of Paraguay, are under judicial process for the alleged crime of money laundering,” CONMEBOL stated, highlighting a “significant step forward” against corruption in football.

The Paraguayan judiciary ordered a raid on the property for fund diversion during Nicolás Leoz’s presidency. The presence of a prosecutor’s team led to the indictment of nine people (including its president, Miguel Ángel Zaldívar) on Tuesday with the aim of raiding and seizing the source code of the information system, which is part of a complaint for plagiarism and breach of contract filed by the company ITTI S.A.E.C.A. Meanwhile, the hearings for the imposition of measures were scheduled for November 20 and 21.

The Statement

FIFA-Gate: Banco Atlas Raided for Fund Diversion During Nicolás Leoz’s Presidency at CONMEBOL

The judicial decision came after repeated requests from CONMEBOL to investigate Banco Atlas. In 2021, CONMEBOL filed a complaint against Nicolás Leoz for money laundering in collusion with Banco Atlas: “At the 2017 Congress, we filed complaints and it was the only confederation in the world to conduct a forensic audit and, as a result, in collaboration with various national judiciaries, we recovered ill-gotten money to reinvest in football,” said Domínguez. “We know there is still football money in the financial system and this president will not give up until every last cent and dollar that belongs to the players, referees, coaches, physical trainers, and members of a football team is recovered,” he added.

In June of last year, CONMEBOL sent a new petition to the Paraguayan judiciary regarding the money laundering case. “Banco Atlas: four simple questions that have no answer,” was the title of the petition signed by Alejandro Domínguez himself. “Did Banco Atlas establish trusts for several million dollars when Leoz was already under an international arrest warrant, an extradition request from the U.S. justice system, and under house arrest? Did it do so at the height of the biggest corruption and fraud scandal of the 21st century?” the executive continued.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇪🇸 here.