WASHINGTON (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 25th August, 2021) The US government will begin the process of returning a total of $201 million in funds to the victims in an international soccer corruption case involving the prosecution of 50 individuals or entities in at least 20 countries, the Department of Justice said on Tuesday.
"The Department of Justice announced today that it will begin the process of remitting forfeited funds to FIFA, the world organizing body of soccer; CONCACAF, the confederation responsible for soccer governance in North and Central America, among other regions," the department said in a press release.
Of the $201 million, $32.3 million in forfeited funds has been approved for an initial distribution, the release explained.
"To date, the prosecutions have resulted in charges against more than 50 individual and corporate defendants from more than 20 countries, primarily in connection with the offer and receipt of bribes and kickbacks paid by sports marketing companies to soccer officials in exchange for ...media and marketing," it said.
On May 27, 2015, an indictment was unsealed charging 14 FIFA officials and sports marketing executives with racketeering, honest services wire fraud and money laundering offenses. On December 3, 2015, a superseding indictment was unsealed charging 16 more FIFA officials with similar crimes, the release said.
