The FIFA corruption scandal has now escalated as father and son businessmen Hugo and Mariano Jinkis allegedly begin plea negotiations with US federal prosecutors in New York.
The two Argentinian businessmen are alleged to have paid millions in bribes to South American football officials to secure exclusive broadcasting and marketing rights and were able to successfully evade extradition for the past ten years after Argentina’s court system blocked a handover to the US.
The two men, with their respective wives, landed on Saturday from Buenos Aires, their hometown and have already had meetings with the prosecutors at Brooklyn, New York on Monday.
This is a major development to what is considered as one of the largest football scandals, which came to light in 2015 when multiple FIFA officials were arrested from their homes following pre-dawn raids in Switzerland.
So far US federal prosecutors have gained convictions of many high-ranking officials and have managed to recover large amounts of money, which is associated with the corruption that engulfs football’s administrative body.
Both Hugo, 81 and Mariano Jinkis, 51, are key individuals connected to the FIFA investigation and face lengthy jail sentences if found guilty. The governing body’s image continues to be affected by this long drawn corruption probe, despite its efforts to address these issues through the introduction of rigorous reforms in managing its operations.
