The National Anticorruption Center arrested a number of persons who are suspected of being involved in the manipulation of football matches. These are the president and administrator of the club Dacia, a footballer of Dinamo-Auto and two citizens of Singapore, IPN reports.
According to the head of the Center’s Prosecution Division Bogdan Zumbreanu, last July it was established that foreign citizens bribed footballers and coaches in order to arrange games and win money by betting. They agreed not only the losses and earnings, but also such details as goals scored at an exact time and the final score.
Bogdan Zumbreanu told a news conference that on March 19, there were arrested two citizens of Singapore, who tried to bribe the vice president of the Moldovan Football Federation with US$50,000 so as to arrange a match between the Under-21 national teams of Moldova and Belgium that was to be played at the end of March. The meetings of these people with the Federation’s vice president were monitored. The foreigners tried to persuade the vice president to discuss with the goalkeeper and with several footballers so that these play as they say.
After last week’s encounter between Dacia and Dinamo-Auto, the National Anticorruption Center questioned a number of players. Some said that they were offered money, but they refused to take it. Within searches carried out at the offices of the president and administrator of the club Dacia, there were found stamps of offshore companies. It was later established that these firms transferred money for bribing footballers.
The two citizens of Singapore were put under arrest for 30 days, being charged with bribery. The president and administrator of Dacia are accused of manipulating a sports event and of money laundering, while a footballer of Dinamo-Auto – of complicity. The coach of Dinamo-Auto was charged, but was freed.
The cumulative punishment for the three offenses is at most ten years behind bars.
