Paraguay’s Senate voted on Thursday to repeal a law giving immunity to the headquarters of South America’s football confederation, the latest fallout from a sweeping US investigation into an alleged bribery scheme in FIFA.
The Senate’s unanimous decision sent the bill on CONMEBOl’s immunity to President Horacio Cartes, who has said he supports it. The measure was approved last week by the House of Deputies.
later in the day, the Vatican suspended an agreement with CONMEBOl calling for the donation of $10,000 for every goal scored in the federation’s Copa America tournament that began this week for an educational program set up by Pope Francis. A Vatican statement said the program would not take any funds until the investigation is clarified. The deal involved CONMEBOl, the Argentine Football Association and Tele Red Imagen SA, owner of the television rights to the tournament.
The moves come amid a major bribery scandal and investigation into the operations of FIFA, the international governing body for football. One of 14 football officials indicted by the US Department of Justice was Nicolas leoz, a Paraguayan and former FIFA executive committee member. He was also a former long-time president of CONMEBOl.
leoz lobbied Paraguay’s legislators in 1997 for the law making the headquarters exempt from legal intervention. The immunity includes protection from the kinds of raids that happened in May at FIFA and CONCACAF headquarters in Switzerland and Miami.
leoz is currently under house arrest. Through his lawyer, he has said he is innocent and will fight extradition to the US.
Also on Thursday, two of the three Argentines wanted in the US investigation petitioned an appeals court in Buenos Aires to remain free while officials consider US. requests for their extradition.
lawyers for Hugo Jinkis and his son Mariano said their petition was presented to the Federal Court of Appeals. The US has requested their extradition, which can be a lengthy process.
The Jinkis are accused of paying millions of dollars in bribes for rights of Copa America games. The third Argentine wanted in the case, Alejandro Burzaco, turned himself in to Italian police on Tuesday.
CBF introduces term limits
Sao Paulo: The Brazilian football confederation has introduced term limits for its presidents, keeping them from being in power for more than eight consecutive years. The change announced on Thursday comes amid increased pressure against the local governing body, whose former president was linked to the investigation into corruption at FIFA.
Presidents will be elected to four-year terms and will have the right to be re-elected only once.
Ricardo Teixeira stayed as CBF president for 23 years before resigning citing medical reasons amid allegations of corruption involving his administration. He was never found guilty but remains under investigation.
Warner to fight extradition
Port-of-spain: A defiant Jack Warner is predicting a lengthy legal battle to extradite him from Trinidad and Tobago to the US to charges in the FIFA corruption case. Warner, a former FIFA vice president and member of Parliament in his homeland, said Wednesday that he intends to resist extradition at a hearing scheduled for July 9.
“After presenting my case in court, let the judge decide,” he told supporters from his political party at a gathering on Wednesday. “If he says I should go I will go. If he says I should stay, I will stay. But it is going to be a long hot summer.”
Warner can appeal any extradition order and legal experts in the Caribbean nation have said he could draw out the process for more than three years.