FIFA Partner, Wanted in World Cup Ticket Scam, Is On the Run - Follow the bouncing ball...

[Magda Hassan]

FIFA Partner, Wanted in World Cup Ticket Scam, Is On the Run

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Ray Whelan, a longstanding director and project manager within the MATCH group, arrives at a police station after been arrested, in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Monday, July 7, 2014.Image: STR/Associated Press


SAO PAULO, Brazil - FIFA partner Ray Whelan gave police in Rio de Janeiro the slip Thursday, just moments before officers were set to re-arrest him on charges of illegally selling World Cup tickets, local media reported.
Whelan, 64, is CEO of Switzerland-headquartered Match Hospitality, FIFA's exclusive provider of hospitality packages for the World Cup. He is now officially considered a fugitive.
The British national was first arrested Monday after police alleged he was involved in a long-running, international World Cup ticket scam, but was later freed after questioning. Whelan was also said to have handed in his passport and FIFA credentials for the duration of the tournament.

Rio court orders re-arrest of Match Hosp CEO Ray Whelan over #WorldCup ticket scam. Police searching for him after he left Copacabana Palace
Ben Tavener (@BenTavener) July 10, 2014

But earlier on Thursday a judge accepted an indictment on Whelan from Rio's public prosecutor and ordered he be taken back into custody. Officers went to locate him at the world-renowned Copacabana Palace hotel but when they went to his room, he was nowhere to be found.



Image: YASUYOSHI CHIBA/AFP/Getty Images

"He left through the staff exit; we saw from the [CCTV] footage that he was leaving in a hurry," police chief Fábio Barucke told reporters. "He is considered a fugitive."
Police said surveillance video showed Whelan leaving about an hour before officers arrived.

Police in rio say fugitive Ray Whelan obviously left his hotel room in a hurry - TV set on, his shoes on the floor #bbcworldcup
Ben Brown (@BenBrownBBC) July 10, 2014

O Globo newspaper reported the FIFA partner had escaped accompanied by his attorney, Fernando Fernandes, who was now said to be negotiating with the authorities over the terms on which Whelan would hand himself in.
Fernandes was quoted by the G1 news portal as saying the arrest warrant was "illegal" and that Whelan would appeal the decision.

#Rio Police say UK executive of #FIFA partner has "fled arrest" over #WorldCup ticket scandal. Ray Whelan earlier protested his innocence.
Wyre Davies (@WyreDavies) July 10, 2014

Still, Brazil's federal police later added Whelan to airports' wanted list, barring him from leaving the country.
Whelan is one of 12 suspects charged with involvement in an illegal ticket sales scheme, which is thought to have made in excess of $90 million per tournament.
Brazilian investigators believe the scam could have been in operation all the way back to the 2002 World Cup, hosted jointly between Japan and South Korea.
The gang is believed to have made so much money from the scam that they could afford to lie low between tournaments, but a three-month investigation by Brazilian police finally led to the group's downfall.
FIFA said it would comply fully with police requests for cooperation in the investigation.
The news first broke after the arrest of Algerian national Mohamadou Lamine Fofana, who was suspected of masterminding the scam.
Police seized tickets, computers, cash, phone and documents, and later alleged they found Lamine had made 900 calls to an official FIFA cell phone, and had enjoyed unfettered access to restricted World Cup areas.
Calls broadcast Sunday on Brazil's Fantástico TV program showed Lamine bragging about having an array of "gold-dust" tickets to top World Cup fixtures - including this Sunday's World Cup final in Rio's famous Maracanã stadium.

http://mashable.com/2014/07/10/fifa-part...-the-slip/

[David Guyatt]

Over 900 calls to an official FIFA cell phone? Well, I never.

This came as a total shock. Not.

[David Guyatt]

Even if eventually proven, I bet that slippery Sepp Blatter still won't resign -- even though everyone knows his "house", FIFA, is corrupt beyond all reason

Brazilian police to investigate Fifa's involvement in £58million World Cup ticket-touting scam

• Detectives want to establish whether governing body was aware of deals
  
• Money laundering and tax evasion allegations also part of worldwide probe
  
• Brazilian prosecutor will enlist help of Interpol and other foreign forces
  
• Has said he wants to 'get to the bottom of it and everyone involved'
  
• Follows the arrest of Ray Whelan, the director of MATCH Hospitality
  

By WILLS ROBINSON
PUBLISHED: 01:50, 13 July 2014 | UPDATED: 08:53, 13 July 2014

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A wide-ranging investigation has been launched into Fifa's involvement in a £58million World Cup ticket-touting racket.
Detectives are keen to establish whether football's global governing body were aware of deals that saw thousands of tickets sold on the black market at hugely-inflated prices.
Police are trying to establish the source of the scam, but believe 'someone from Fifa' and a middleman from hospitality partners, MATCH, channelled tickets to illegitimate distributors.
The firm has become the centre of the scandal after the arrest of its British director, Ray Whelan, who is now considered a 'fugitive' after fleeing his Rio de Janeiro hotel last week.


Scandal: Brazilian police have said that 'someone in Fifa', based at the headquarters in Zurich (pictured) and an 'intermediary' from MATCH hospitality chanelled tickets to the black market



Fled: Ray Whelan, an executive at MATCH Hospitality, is the centre of a multi-million pound ticket-touting investigation and is now considered a 'fugitive' after fleeing from his Rio de Janeiro hotel last week

He is one of 12 suspects, along with Algerian businessmen Lamine Fofana, who have been arrested and questioned for their alleged part in the criminal conspiracy.

Police are believed to have filed charges against Whelan, Fofana and 10 others.

MATCH have been reported as saying that the charges against Whelan are baseless and that his arrest was illegal.

Around 22,000 hours of phone calls between a 'ringleader' and the Fifa headquarters in Switzerland are said to have been intercepted by police officers and will be used as the basis of the probe.
Brazilian prosecutor Marcos Kac, who is heading up the inquiry, is set to enlist the help of Interpol and a number of other foreign police forces to aid what could be the biggest investigation into illegal ticket sales in the tournament's history.

More...

• As Brazil 2014 nears its end, here's what's coming in 2022: Stadiums for controversy-dogged Qatar World Cup take shape - but will the teams ever get to play there?
  
• Moment British boss of FIFA hospitality firm leaves hotel by the back door to avoid arrest an hour before police come to arrest him and brand him a 'fugitive'
  
• British director of FIFA hospitality partner released by police after arrest in Brazil over illegal ticket sales
  

He said he wanted to identify the source of the tickets and also probe the possibility that tax evasion and money laundering was involved.
Kac, who exposed the touting ring, told The Sunday Times: 'This next part of the investigation will be huge. We are going to get to the bottom of it and everyone involved.'
The prosecutor has also said he will look into the roles of Mexican brothers Jaime and Enrique Byrom, directors of MATCH Hospitality who also own their own company, Byrom, in Cheadle, Cheshire.


Probe: The prosecutor in the inquiry is Marcos Kac who claims he wants to 'get to the bottom of it and everyone involved'

The scandal has grown since the initial investigation which centred around Whelan, who is the former agent of England legend Sir Bobby Charlton.
Police in Rio de Janeiro have declared him 'a fugitive' after they attempted to re-arrest him as part of the investigation.
Officers arrived at the lavish Copacabana Palace hotel last week with an arrest warrant, but he was not there and police said they had CCTV footage of him leaving through a service door.
He has been described as the 'facilitator' who allowed a large ring of scalpers to have access to tickets, which they re-sold at vastly inflated prices.
The Copacabana Palace is also where police conducted parts of an undercover operation known as Jules Rimet named after the former FIFA president who launched the World Cup in 1930.


Police received recordings of mobile phone conversations between Whelan and Fofana, who is alleged to be the leader of the ticket touting ring, negotiating the sale of hospitality packages for £14,605 each in cash.
Whelan is now said to be on the run and could face ten years in jail if he is caught, but his legal team have said his arrest was 'illegal'.
MATCH were allocated about 445,000 World Cup tickets.

The latest set of allegations is part of a series of scandals involving Fifa. In June, the body, headed by Sepp Blatter, faced pressure to strip Qatar of the 2022 World Cup following corruption claims.

Sponsors Adidas, Visa and Sony expressed their anger after allegations emerged that the former vice president, Mohamed Bin Hammam, used bribes to secure votes for the country's bid.
Fifa made £1billion from sponsorship at the previous World Cup in South Africa and relies heavily on continued advertising revenue from major firms.
The governing body has said it takes a strong stance against ticket touts and will co-operate with any police investigation.


Armed presence: Brazilian National Force police officers stand guard outside the Copacabana Palace where Ray Whelan, of MATCH Services, had been staying




Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-...z37Kwpzjuu
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[Magda Hassan]

Hey, and this is just the ticket scam they have going! Imagine the others - hospitality - construction - bidding - broadcast rights

[Peter Lemkin]

in excess of $90 million per tournament. (just on tickets, alone)

Hmmm....that's real money!:hock::