Suspended Caribbean soccer official to face FIFA graft probe Friday
September 20th, 2011 - 7:17 pm ICT by IANSZurich, Sep 20 (IANS/CMC) Colin Klass, the suspended vice president of the Caribbean Football Union (CFU), will appear before a FIFA Ethics Committee hearing Friday.
The Guyana Football Federation president was suspended last month pending a full inquiry relating to bribes allegedly offered by former FIFA presidential candidate Mohamed bin Hammam to secure votes for the position.
Klass was the only CFU official to be sanctioned ahead of any ethics committee hearing and media reports indicate his charges relate to an attempt to obstruct the investigation into Bin Hammam - banned for life by FIFA - and deposed CFU president Austin “Jack” Warner.
Warner, who was also president of CONCACAF and FIFA’s longest-serving vice president, resigned from all footballing activities after being charged, while Bin Hammam is planning to take his case to the Court of Arbitration for Sport.
At the same time, a hearing into 15 other CFU officials charged for their alleged involvement in the cash-for-votes scandal is expected to take place between October 10 and 14.
The CFU 15 are all under investigation after attending a meeting in Trinidad at which it is alleged that Bin Hammam offered $40,000 to delegates in exchange for their vote.
The CFU officials are likely to be summoned to FIFA headquarters here to answer the charges, and reports indicate it is expected to last up to four days, given the number of officials being probed.
–IANS/CMC
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- Football scandal: Warner slams FIFA over recent moves - Sep 12, 2011
- FIFA scandal: Caribbean members given 48 hours to reply or face sanctions - Jul 27, 2011
- Dominica's football chief to appeal against FIFA ban - Nov 21, 2011
- Football scandal: Warner alleges conspiracy against CFU - Oct 14, 2011
- Whistleblower Blazer quits - Oct 07, 2011
- Warner accuses Caribbean officials of caving in to FIFA - Dec 24, 2011
- Bin Hammam writes to FIFA, claims unfair treatment - Jun 01, 2011
- FIFA ex-vice president to reveal graft within world body - Oct 18, 2011
- Bin Hammam drags FIFA president Blatter to ethics committee (Lead) - May 27, 2011
- FIFA opens ethics proceedings against its President Joseph Blatter - May 27, 2011
- AFC president Hammam faces charges of bribery in FIFA - May 25, 2011
Tags: arbitration, bribes, caribbean football union, caribbean football union cfu, cmc, committee hearing, concacaf, court of arbitration for sport, delegates, ethics, federation president, football federation, jack warner, klass, mohamed, president austin, presidential candidate, scandal, soccer official, zurich