Brazil police to investigate Ricardo Teixeira

Posted Tuesday, September 27, 2011 by YAHOO Sport

SAO PAULO (AP)—A prosecutor will order Brazilian police to investigate football federation president Ricardo Teixeira over a money transfer that allegedly stemmed from kickbacks.

Prosecutor Marcelo Freire confirmed Monday he will ask federal police to look into whether Teixeira illegally transferred money into Brazil after allegedly taking kickbacks from a former FIFA marketing partner in the 1990s.

The BBC accused Teixeira of being one of the FIFA members involved in the corruption scheme, but football’s governing body cleared him of any wrongdoing.

The prosecutor’s office said in a statement to The Associated Press that the request to have police investigate the circumstances of the money transfer will be made in the next couple of days. It said Teixeira will be investigated for money laundering and tax crimes.

The police is obligated to take a look into the case, and the result could either clear Teixeira or lead to charges against him, as well as unveil more information regarding the widespread corruption allegations made by the BBC.

The investigation could take months, according to the prosecutor’s office.

Teixeira is the president of the local organizing committee for the 2014 World Cup, which Brazil will host for the first time since 1950.

Arguably the most powerful man in Brazilian football, Teixeira has been repeatedly attacked by domestic media over alleged irregularities during his reign since taking over the federation in 1989. The Brazilian Congress has twice investigated Teixeira for alleged wrongdoings, but the probes were never finalized.

There have been some protests from fans too, including marches against Teixeira and social media campaigns criticizing him.

Teixeira was recently accused of unethical behavior by the former chairman of England’s Football Association, David Triesman, who claimed during a British parliamentary inquiry that Teixeira and other FIFA executive committee members engaged in improper conduct during bidding for the 2018 World Cup.

FIFA cleared Teixeira of the accusations, and the Brazilian official said the allegations were made because the English were upset over losing the World Cup bid.

Before FIFA’s draw for the World Cup qualifiers in July, Teixeira got into an altercation with the English media, calling it corrupt and refusing to talk to British journalists.