Off to the trial of Blatter and Platini, they risk 5 years

The trial of Sepp Blatter and Michel Platini opened today in Bellinzona .

The former FIFA and Uefa presidents are accused of fraud and will have to answer before the Federal Criminal Court the accusation of illicit payment of 2 million francs , paid in 2011 by FIFA to Platini, compromising the heritage of the world federation and illegally enriching Platini.

The Public Prosecutor of the Helvetic Confederation accuses Joseph Blatter of the crime of fraud , possibly of embezzlement , and in the alternative of unfaithful administration and falsification of documents . Michel Platini is accused of fraud , possible involvement in embezzlement , and in the alternative of complicity in unfaithful administration , in particular in the form of complicity, as well as forgery of documents.

The trial will end on June 22 , the sentence is scheduled for July 8 .

THE HEARING - Blatter, 86 years old and in a dark suit and white shirt, went to court accompanied by his daughter Corinne and the trusted lawyer Lorenz Erni. During the hearing, before going into the merits of the charges against the defendants, Platini's legal team attempted to broaden the scope of the case to launch a separate investigation into the current FIFA president Gianni Infantino. It was therefore recalled that, in 2015 before the investigation into this alleged fraud began, Platini had expressed his intention to run for the presidency of FIFA, a role to which Infantino was then elected in 2016. But according to the lawyer of the former Juventus star, Dominic Nellen, "there is a direct link" between the suspected fraud against Platini and several secret meetings between Infantino and the former Swiss attorney general. Prosecutor Thomas Hildbrand rejected any alleged connection between the two files, while FIFA lawyer Catherine Hohl-Chirazi has branded Nellen's claims as a "conspiracy theory" advanced "over and over" to evade the substance of the allegations.

Defense and prosecution agree on one point: Platini was hired as a director and consultant to Blatter between 1998 and 2002, and a contract was signed in 1999 for an annual salary of 300,000 Swiss francs. The Office of the Attorney General of Switzerland (OAG), which supports the prosecution, says this amount was invoiced by Platini and paid in full by FIFA. But, again according to the indictment, more than eight years later, Platini allegedly presented a fictitious invoice for money still owed for his period as a consultant, in the amount of two million francs.

"With Blatter's involvement, Fifa made a payment to Platini for the aforementioned amount in early 2011" the prosecutor's theory, according to which "the evidence gathered confirmed that this payment to Platini was made without a legal basis. And this payment damaged Fifa's assets and illegally enriched Platini ", is the theory of the federal prosecution.

Blatter's first interrogation has been moved and postponed to tomorrow for health reasons . The former FIFA president said: "I can hardly breathe, I don't feel like answering questions".

If convicted, Blatter and Platini face a sentence of up to 5 years in prison , but they could also get away with a very "high" fine .

(Unioneonline / vl)