Swiss to partially close proceedings against Blatter: Reports

Paris, April 11 (IANS) In what could be termed as a half court victory for Sepp Blatter, the Swiss Public Prosecutor’s Office (MPC) has reportedldecided to close one of two investigations against the former FIFA president Sepp Blatter.

According to French newspaper Le Monde and German daily Suddeutsche Zeitung, after five years of investigation, Blatter will not be prosecuted for the granting of television rights to the Caribbean Football Union (CFU).

That was one of two criminal cases opened against the 84-year-old in 2015 for “suspicion of unfair management and breach of trust”.

Swiss prosecutors suspected Blatter of having signed a “contract unfavourable to FIFA” with the CFU, then under the control of Jack Warner, who was banned from football for life and indicted for corruption by American justice officials.

The report also claimed that although the decision has not been formalised, the MPC has confirmed that it intended to close the investigation concerning this file.

However, Blatter, for the moment, retains his status as an accused in the second part of the case, the allegedly “unfair” payment of 2 million Swiss francs (1.8 million euros) that he paid in February 2011 to Michel Platini, then president of the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA).

Platini, who was questioned as an assistant witness, was dismissed in this case, in May 2018, by a letter from the Swiss public prosecutor’s office. However, Blatter was ousted from office in 2015 and is currently serving a six-year ban from FIFA activities.

–IANS

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