Belgium charges 19 over fraud

BRUSSELS: Belgian prosecutors said on Friday they had charged 19 people, including two referees, agents and the coach of Belgian champions Club Bruges, with fraud or match-fixing.

The offences ranged from criminal organisation to money laundering and corruption, federal prosecutors said.

Nine of the 19 remained in custody, including agents Dejan Veljkovic and Mogi Bayat, charged with having set up schemes to hide fees paid to themselves and to players, and referee Bart Vertenten.

Ivan Leko, the Croatian coach of champions Club Bruges, was among those released, although he is charged with money-laundering. He returned to training on Friday.

“I will fight back. This is not the first time I was on zero... I didn’t deserve this,” he told the broadcaster VTM.

His club are playing in Champions League Group A with Atletico Madrid, Monaco and Borussia Dortmund.

Of the others charged, a number are officials at clubs Mechelen and Waasland-Beveren, who played each other on the final day of the regular season in March.

Prosecutors suspect that match, won 2-0 by Mechelen, and one a week before when Antwerp beat Mechelen’s relegation rivals Eupen 2-0, were fixed. In that game, Vertenten awarded Antwerp a penalty after a foul committed just outside the penalty area.

Prosecutors say Veljkovic colluded with officials and referees to prevent Mechelen being relegated, although the club, winner of UEFA’s Cup Winners’ Cup in 1988, did in fact go down.

Three months after the national side reached the World Cup semi-final, the news indicating uncomfortably close ties between agents, officials and referees has dominated Belgian media.

Police raided 44 clubs and residences across Belgium on Wednesday, while a further 13 searches took place in France, Luxembourg, Cyprus, Montenegro, Serbia and Macedonia.

Among the nine clubs targeted were Belgium’s “big three” of Anderlecht, Club Bruges and Standard Liege.