The Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office has opposed to the accusation for a crime of bribery of FC Barcelona, of president Joan Laporta, his predecessors Josep Maria Bartomeu and Sandro Rosell, and two former directors of the club. The On December 19, the public prosecution adhered to the appeals presented by the defense lawyers of the accused, considering that the accusation of bribery is not appropriate. In their writing, the prosecutors maintain that the former vice president of the Technical Committee of Referees (CTA), José María Enríquez Negreiracannot be considered a public official, contrary to of the argument put forward by the Barcelona judge Joaquín Aguirrewhich investigates the case of alleged sports corruption.
In the event that the bribery accusation falls, Joan Laporta would be left out of the investigation. On the other hand, the two former presidents and the former directors under investigation would continue in the judicial process. The Barcelona Court must decide not only this aspect, but also on whether or not the crime expires in the case of the current president of the Barça entity.. FC Barcelona paid up to 7.5 million euros to the former referee leader and his son, Javier Enriquez Romero, between 2001 and 2018, for supposedly favoring the club.
The prosecution opposes the accusation of Laporta in the Negreira case
Judge Aguirre alluded in his indictment that the Royal Spanish Football Federation (RFEF), on which the CTA depends, is an entity that performs functions of a public nature. In this way, he maintains that Enríquez Negreira “exercised public functions” as vice president of said committee.. For this reason, it equates him to an official for criminal purposes when introducing this crime. This hypothesis, appealed by the defense with the support now of the prosecution, directed the judicial process to be processed by the law of the jury and, therefore, it would be a popular court that would decide the guilt or innocence of the accused. Furthermore, this type of crime does not require proving the adulteration of matches and the payments from the Barça entity are already proven.. In the event of conviction, a fine could be imposed on Barça, as a legal entity.
Public functions
The robe highlights in the car that Enriquez Negreira “participated in the exercise of public functions” during the period of time that, at the same time, he received from FC Barcelona. The magistrate argues that, in addition, the Barça club stopped paying him when he ceased his position as vice president of the technical committee. For that reason and “on an indicative basis”, The judge points out that the payments were made in response to the position held by the then arbitrator in the body that regulates arbitration in Spanish football.
The judge assures that a vice president of the Technical Committee of Referees, “as a person who exercises public functions, must be impartial and have equitable treatment with all teams, which is why it is incompatible with the natural exercise of his position who receives a large annual remuneration without a contract that serves as support to carry out a monitoring function of the referees who directed FC Barcelona and who were under the orbit” of his authority.
2024-02-02 18:13:10
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