Swiss special prosecutor has announced on Thursday the opening of criminal proceedings against FIFA president Gianni Infantino. The Italian, targeted for his informal meetings with prosecutor Michael Lauber, claims to have committed an offense and is available to investigators.
This investigation opens a week after the resignation of the chief of the Swiss public prosecutor’s office Lauber, implicated in his management of FIFAgate and suspected of collusion with Infantino.
The two men met informally on several occasions between 2016 and 2017. And Lauber, who has been Attorney General since 2012, offered to resign last week after a Swiss Federal court concluded he covered up a behind closed-doors meeting with Infantino in June 2017 and lied to supervisors while his office investigated corruption surrounding world football’s governing body.
Special Federal Prosecutor, Stefan Keller, appointed at the end of June to shed light on the case, believes that there are “elements of reprehensible behaviour” after one of the meetings between Lauber, Infantino and the first prosecutor of Haut-Valais Rinaldo Arnold, also targeted by the current criminal proceedings.
“As President of FIFA, it has been my aim from day one, and it remains my aim, to assist the authorities with investigating past wrongdoings at FIFA,” Infantino said.
“FIFA officials have met with prosecutors in other jurisdictions across the world for exactly these purposes. People have been convicted and sentenced, thanks to FIFA’s cooperation, and especially in the United States of America, where our cooperation has resulted in over 40 criminal convictions.
“Therefore, I remain fully supportive of the judicial process, and FIFA remains willing to fully cooperate with the Swiss authorities for these purposes.” Infantino added.
Last year, a Swiss court ordered Lauber to recuse himself from inquiries into world football, ruling that his meetings with Infantino had revealed bias. Other federal prosecutors are currently leading the investigation.
