‘Suspected global match-fixer seeks reason for rearrest’
Singapore - A Singaporean man accused of leading the world's
largest football match-fixing syndicate is trying to find out why
he has been rearrested almost a week after being freed by the
country's highest court, his lawyer said Wednesday.
The release of businessman Dan Tan on November 25
following an order by the Court of Appeal was roundly
criticised by football's world governing body FIFA and other
analysts as a blow to efforts to rid the global sport of
corruption.
However, police issued a terse statement late Tuesday
confirming Tan had been rearrested six days after he was
freed "for investigations into suspected involvement in criminal
activities".
"Investigations are on-going," the statement said without
giving details.
Tan's defence counsel Hamidul Haq told AFP on Wednesday: "I
am still at the stage where I am trying to get information (on
why he was rearrested). I don't have any new material."
Also read : Asian soccer body urges support for FIFA candidate
Salman
The three-member court, Singapore's highest judicial
authority, that ordered his release, had ruled that Tan's
continued detention was "unlawful" because he did not pose a
danger to public safety in the city-state.
The Court of Appeal said that while match-fixing was
"reprehensible and should not be condoned", Tan's alleged
acts "all took place beyond our shores" and no evidence was
presented to show that potential witnesses were being
intimidated.
He had earlier been arrested in September 2013 and held
under a law that allowed for the detention of suspected
criminals without trial.
FIFA said through its spokesman last week that it was "very
disappointed" with Tan's release "given the gravity of his past
activities relating to match manipulation".
After Tan's first arrest in 2013, the then-Interpol chief Ronald
Noble said the Singapore-based ring he allegedly led was the
world's "largest and most aggressive match-fixing syndicate,
with tentacles reaching every continent".
Singapore's ministry of home affairs, under heavy international
pressure, had invoked a special anti-gangster law against Tan,
51, after it became difficult to find enough evidence and
witnesses to file criminal charges.
In a statement issued a day after Tan was freed last month,
the ministry said it would study the judgement carefully and
decide on its next step.
It said that Singapore law enforcement agencies began
investigating Tan in 2011 "when he was repeatedly cited in
Italian court papers for his involvement in transnational
criminal activities in the form of match-fixing".
Tan was detained under the special law "for being the leader
and financier of a global criminal syndicate that conducted
match-fixing operations out of Singapore," the statement said.
"Investigations indicated that Tan had an extensive network of
people under his control -- many of whom were recruited in,
and directed out of Singapore," it added.
For the latest on national news, politics, sport, entertainment
and more follow us on Twitter and like our Facebook page.
- AFP
largest football match-fixing syndicate is trying to find out why
he has been rearrested almost a week after being freed by the
country's highest court, his lawyer said Wednesday.
The release of businessman Dan Tan on November 25
following an order by the Court of Appeal was roundly
criticised by football's world governing body FIFA and other
analysts as a blow to efforts to rid the global sport of
corruption.
However, police issued a terse statement late Tuesday
confirming Tan had been rearrested six days after he was
freed "for investigations into suspected involvement in criminal
activities".
"Investigations are on-going," the statement said without
giving details.
Tan's defence counsel Hamidul Haq told AFP on Wednesday: "I
am still at the stage where I am trying to get information (on
why he was rearrested). I don't have any new material."
Also read : Asian soccer body urges support for FIFA candidate
Salman
The three-member court, Singapore's highest judicial
authority, that ordered his release, had ruled that Tan's
continued detention was "unlawful" because he did not pose a
danger to public safety in the city-state.
The Court of Appeal said that while match-fixing was
"reprehensible and should not be condoned", Tan's alleged
acts "all took place beyond our shores" and no evidence was
presented to show that potential witnesses were being
intimidated.
He had earlier been arrested in September 2013 and held
under a law that allowed for the detention of suspected
criminals without trial.
FIFA said through its spokesman last week that it was "very
disappointed" with Tan's release "given the gravity of his past
activities relating to match manipulation".
After Tan's first arrest in 2013, the then-Interpol chief Ronald
Noble said the Singapore-based ring he allegedly led was the
world's "largest and most aggressive match-fixing syndicate,
with tentacles reaching every continent".
Singapore's ministry of home affairs, under heavy international
pressure, had invoked a special anti-gangster law against Tan,
51, after it became difficult to find enough evidence and
witnesses to file criminal charges.
In a statement issued a day after Tan was freed last month,
the ministry said it would study the judgement carefully and
decide on its next step.
It said that Singapore law enforcement agencies began
investigating Tan in 2011 "when he was repeatedly cited in
Italian court papers for his involvement in transnational
criminal activities in the form of match-fixing".
Tan was detained under the special law "for being the leader
and financier of a global criminal syndicate that conducted
match-fixing operations out of Singapore," the statement said.
"Investigations indicated that Tan had an extensive network of
people under his control -- many of whom were recruited in,
and directed out of Singapore," it added.
For the latest on national news, politics, sport, entertainment
and more follow us on Twitter and like our Facebook page.
- AFP
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