By Andrew Warshaw
April 5 – Three Lebanese officials who were suddenly pulled out of an Asian Football Confederation cup game in Singapore have been charged over allegations of receiving sexual bribes in exchange for match-fixing, according to the country’s anti-corruption unit which acted on a tip-off.
Singapore’s Corrupt Practices Investigation Bureau (CPIB) said in a statement they had acted on “prior information of match fixing” involving the three officials, heaping more unwanted spotlight on Lebanon whose authorities punished 24 players in February for allegedly helping rig international and regional matches.
“Subsequent investigations revealed that the trio corruptly received gratification… in the form of free sexual service from three females,” the CPIB said in a statement. “Singapore has always adopted a zero tolerance approach towards corruption, and match fixing of any form is not condoned in Singapore.”
The CPIB added that it “investigates into match-fixing through bribery cases and will not hesitate to take action against any parties involved if they had given or received bribes to fix a match.”
Singapore and south-east Asia in general have increasingly been at the heart of match-fixing scandals, allegedly housing an international network of gambling cartels responsible for rigging hundreds of games worldwide and generating billions of dollars. Last week, the company widely regarded as the world’s leading experts in betting fraud detection revealed to InsideWorldFootball that up to 45 countries in Europe suffer from match-fixing with as many as 300 games per season rigged.
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