Investing.com -- U.S. Attorney General Loretta Lynch sent strong signals on Monday that the largest corruption investigation ever against FIFA, the world's governing body of soccer, is far from being complete.
Appearing alongside prosecutors from Switzerland for the first time since a massive FIFA corruption scandal became public four months ago, Lynch indicated that a probe against top global soccer officials has widened and that more charges could be forthcoming. In May, the U.S. Department of Justice rocked the global soccer community with the unsealing of indictments against 14 defendants in a longstanding bribery scandal. The charges stem from the officials' role in the solicitation of bribes and kickbacks related to broadcast and marketing rights of numerous FIFA-sanctioned games, including World Cup qualifiers.
In the wee hours of May 27, several officials were taken from a Zurich hotel in handcuffs, days before Sepp Blatter was re-elected as FIFA president at the 65th FIFA Congress. Blatter abruptly resigned from his post on June 2 without admitting to any wrongdoing. On Monday, Lynch said U.S. or foreign authorities have arrested 13 of the 14 defendants in the case, while three have been arraigned in Brooklyn, where the case is proceeding. Furthermore, she said 10 others remain abroad in Switzerland and three other countries, pending extradition to the U.S.
"To anyone who seeks to live in the past and to return soccer to the days of corruption and bribery, cronyism and patronage, this global response sends a clear message: you are on the wrong side of progress and do a disservice to the integrity of this wonderful sport," Lynch said in remarks before the 20th Annual International Association of Prosecutors in Zurich.
Hours after the arrests, Switzerland's Office of Attorney General launched a separate investigation related to allegations of bid-rigging in connection with the 2018 World Cup in Russia and 2022 World Cup in Qatar. Echoing Lynch's comments, Swiss Attorney General Michael Lauber said Monday that his office has not even reached "half-time," with the scope of their investigation.
In recent weeks, Lauber said the Office of Attorney General has seized several apartments in the Swiss Alps, which could have been used for purposes of money laundering. Lauber also said his office has compiled approximately 11 terabytes of electronic data during the investigation, two more than which it had gathered through June. In addition, the Swiss Attorney General has flagged more than 120 bank accounts for suspicious financial activity, up from 103 a month earlier.
When asked whether charges against Blatter were imminent, Lynch declined to comment. Blatter is reportedly under investigation by the FBI.