- Title: Security around court as trial of Football Leaks set to start in Portugal
- Date: 4th September 2020
- Summary: SIN EL FIL, SUBURB OF BEIRUT, LEBANON (RECENT) (REUTERS) ***WARNING: CONTAINS PROFANITY*** VARIOUS OF RIZK WALKING / ARRIVING TO THE PLASTIC SURGEON'S CLINIC TO REMOVE STITCHES RIZK, IN THE PLASTIC SURGEON'S CLINIC, TAKING A SELFIE BEFORE REMOVING HIS STITCHES MOBILE PHONE SCREEN OF RIZK SHOWING HIS SELFIE (SOUNDBITE) (Arabic and English) SURVIVOR WOUNDED IN THE BEIRUT BLA
- Embargoed: 18th September 2020 07:33
- Keywords: Court Football leaks Portugal Rui Pinto
- Location: LISBON, PORTUGAL/ BUDAPEST, HUNGARY
- City: LISBON, PORTUGAL/ BUDAPEST, HUNGARY
- Country: Various
- Topics: Crime/Law/Justice,Judicial Process/Court Cases/Court Decisions,Portugal,Sport
- Reuters ID: LVA001CU9UZIF
- Aspect Ratio: 16:9
- Story Text:Police officers set up crowd barriers outside a Lisbon court on Friday (September 4), a few hours before the start of the high-profile trial of Rui Pinto, the creator of Football Leaks.
Pinto, whose trove of 70 million documents exposed the dealings of European soccer clubs, will be tried for a total of 90 crimes, mostly related to allegations of unauthorised access to data, violation of correspondence attempted extortion.
Heavy security is expected during the trial, which starts at 9.30 a.m. at the Lisbon's Central Criminal court, where some of Portugal's biggest cases are usually heard. There will be at least three court sessions per week until December.
Several armed police officers were spotted walking around the court on Friday morning.
The 31-year-old, who was detained in January 2019 and freed from house arrest last month, acknowledges creating the trove but says there was no crime because he was acting in the public interest.
He is now under witness protection.
"The fight carries on because nearly two years later Portugal is still a haven for big corruption and money laundering," Pinto wrote on Twitter shortly after being released.
Football Leaks' data showed how some of the richest and most prominent figures in soccer avoided tax by channelling earnings offshore; provided insight into wealthy Gulf individuals and organisations who have become influential in soccer; and examined the huge sums flowing through some leading clubs and the uneven way authorities have applied the sport's rules.
Throughout the trial, a total of 45 witnesses, including fugitive U.S. intelligence leaker Edward Snowden, will testify in Pinto's defence.
In January, Pinto said he was also responsible for disclosing hundreds of thousands of files about alleged financial schemes used by Angolan billionaire and former first daughter Isabel dos Santos to build a vast business empire.
Angola has begun criminal investigations but dos Santos has repeatedly denied wrongdoing.
(Production: Miguel Pereira, Paul Warren, Gabriela Boccaccio) - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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