Match-fixing suspect held in Milan
Source: Agencies |
February 22, 2013, Friday
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ITALIAN police arrested a fugitive Slovenian associate of alleged match-fixing kingpin Tan Seet Eng yesterday after he flew in from Singapore to hand himself over, they said in a statement.
The man, identified as 31-year-old Admir Suljic, arrived at Milan's Malpensa airport in the early hours to find police waiting for him after a tip-off by Singapore authorities.
Police said in a statement that Suljic, who is accused of "criminal association aimed at sporting fraud", had bought a one-way ticket with the intention of surrendering to the authorities.
He had been on the run since December 2011 and is considered a "key element" in Italy's 'Last Bet' probe into match-fixing between 2009 and 2011. Police said Suljic would be taken to a prison in Cremona.
"His direct involvement in the international criminal group, made of Singapore nationals and people from the Balkans, has emerged from the investigation," the police statement said.
Italian prosecutors have accused Tan, also known as Dan Tan, of heading an organization to fix soccer matches worldwide and Italian police have issued an arrest warrant for him.
A joint inquiry by Europol, the European anti-crime agency, and national prosecutors identified about 680 suspicious matches, including qualifying games for the World Cup and European Championships, and the Champions League.
Interpol chief Ronald Noble, speaking at a conference in Kuala Lumpur on combating match-fixing, said Suljic was part of Singapore national Tan's network.
The international police body has declined to say if it has declared Tan an internationally wanted person, but an Italian judicial source said Interpol had pooled together investigations launched by authorities in countries, including Italy, Germany, Spain and Turkey.
Singapore police said yesterday a team of four officers would be sent to Interpol within the next two weeks to assist in match-fixing investigations and that the city-state remained "committed" in the fight against match-fixing.
Experts say match-fixing is rampant in Asia, where lax regulation combined with a huge betting market have made soccer a prime target for crime syndicates.
Last year the head of an anti-corruption watchdog estimated that US$1 trillion was gambled on sport each year.
The man, identified as 31-year-old Admir Suljic, arrived at Milan's Malpensa airport in the early hours to find police waiting for him after a tip-off by Singapore authorities.
Police said in a statement that Suljic, who is accused of "criminal association aimed at sporting fraud", had bought a one-way ticket with the intention of surrendering to the authorities.
He had been on the run since December 2011 and is considered a "key element" in Italy's 'Last Bet' probe into match-fixing between 2009 and 2011. Police said Suljic would be taken to a prison in Cremona.
"His direct involvement in the international criminal group, made of Singapore nationals and people from the Balkans, has emerged from the investigation," the police statement said.
Italian prosecutors have accused Tan, also known as Dan Tan, of heading an organization to fix soccer matches worldwide and Italian police have issued an arrest warrant for him.
A joint inquiry by Europol, the European anti-crime agency, and national prosecutors identified about 680 suspicious matches, including qualifying games for the World Cup and European Championships, and the Champions League.
Interpol chief Ronald Noble, speaking at a conference in Kuala Lumpur on combating match-fixing, said Suljic was part of Singapore national Tan's network.
The international police body has declined to say if it has declared Tan an internationally wanted person, but an Italian judicial source said Interpol had pooled together investigations launched by authorities in countries, including Italy, Germany, Spain and Turkey.
Singapore police said yesterday a team of four officers would be sent to Interpol within the next two weeks to assist in match-fixing investigations and that the city-state remained "committed" in the fight against match-fixing.
Experts say match-fixing is rampant in Asia, where lax regulation combined with a huge betting market have made soccer a prime target for crime syndicates.
Last year the head of an anti-corruption watchdog estimated that US$1 trillion was gambled on sport each year.
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