- Title: Ecuador's former soccer president jailed on laundering charges
- Date: 19th November 2016
- Summary: QUITO, ECUADOR (NOVEMBER 18, 2016) (REUTERS) VARIOUS OF EXTERIOR OF COURTHOUSE VARIOUS OF FORMER ECUADOREAN SOCCER PRESIDENT ARRIVING AT COURT AND GREETING HIS LAWYERS VARIOUS OF PROSECUTOR DIANA SALAZAR WITH HER LEGAL TEAM VARIOUS OF DEFENCE LAWYERS DURING TRIAL VARIOUS OF AUDIENCE AT TRIAL VARIOUS OF POLICE NEAR DEFENDANT VARIOUS OF PROSECUTOR DURING TRAIL (SOUNDBITE) (Spanish) PROSECUTOR, DIANA SALAZAR, SAYING: "The prosecution has done its job. The prosecution's argument has been accepted and taken on by the judges." VARIOUS OF CHIRIBOGA GUARDED BY POLICE (SOUNDBITE) (Spanish) DEFENCE LAWYER, MAURICIO GARRIDO, SAYING: "The prison sentence that we have orally heard by members of the criminal court is subject to appeal. We will take this to the last stage, we believe there is no foundation (to the charges) and we expect to read the basis for this ruling in writing and we will make a statement. Regarding what has been said about the guilt of the charge, there has been no laundering of assets." VARIOUS OF MEDIA DURING TRIAL
- Embargoed: 4th December 2016 04:57
- Keywords: FIFA soccer court prison sentence Ecuador Luis Chiroboga
- Location: QUITO, ECUADOR
- City: QUITO, ECUADOR
- Country: Ecuador
- Topics: Crime/Law/Justice,Crime
- Reuters ID: LVA001593YONB
- Aspect Ratio: 16:9
- Story Text: The former president of Ecuador's soccer federation has been sentenced to ten years jail for laundering stemming from an investigation into corruption in FIFA, officials in the Andean nation reported.
Luis Chiriboga and two of his colleagues were sentenced at a court in Quito on Friday (November 18). He had been previously under house arrest as charges against him proceeded to court.
Chiriboga was the head of Ecuador's soccer federation for some 18 years. According to reports, he was one of 40 soccer officials from Latin America embroiled in a FIFA corruption investigation initiated from the United States. Ecuador then handled its own investigations.
"The prosecution has done its job. The prosecution's argument has been accepted and taken on by the judges," said prosecutor, Diana Salazar.
But the defence have vowed to appeal the decision.
"The prison sentence that we have orally heard by members of the criminal court is subject to appeal. We will take this to the last stage, we believe there is no foundation (to the charges) and we expect to read the basis for this ruling in writing and we will make a statement. Regarding what has been said about the guilt of the charge, there has been no laundering of assets," said defence lawyer, Mauricio Garrido.
In the wake of the international investigations, FIFA's new President Gianni Infantino has vowed to stamp out corruption.
On succeeding the disgraced Sepp Blatter as FIFA chief, Infantino inherited an organisation still reeling from the corruption scandal that saw dozens of international soccer officials indicted in the United States last year for racketeering, money-laundering and bribery. - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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