Sepp Blatter
Source: Africa Publicity
Former FIFA President Sepp Blatter and France soccer legend Michel Platini have been cleared of corruption charges by a Swiss court, marking their second acquittal in two and a half years.
The pair, once among the most powerful figures in global soccer, were found not guilty of fraud at the Extraordinary Appeals Chamber of the Swiss Criminal Court in Muttenz, near Basel [1).
“After two acquittals, even the Office of the Attorney General of Switzerland must realise that these criminal proceedings have definitively failed. Michel Platini must finally be left in peace in criminal matters,” said Platini’s lawyer, Dominic Nellen, in a statement.
The case revolved around a 2 million Swiss franc ($2.26 million) payment Blatter authorized for Platini in 2011, which was deemed a consultancy fee for work carried out between 1998 and 2002. Platini claimed that the payment was partly deferred due to FIFA’s financial constraints at the time.
The scandal, which emerged in 2015, put an end to Platini’s hopes of succeeding Blatter as FIFA president. “The criminal proceedings have had not only legal but also massive personal and professional consequences for Michel Platini – although no incriminating evidence was ever presented,” Nellen said.
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