By Andrew Warshaw
June 27 – A French private investigator is claiming that a Sunday Times expose into corruption by a banned FIFA executive committee member was, in part, flawed.
Jean-Charles Brisard, who has worked on many high profile international terrorism cases and authored the first and most exhaustive study ever written on the financial network of the Osama Bin Laden organisation, was hired by Reynald Temarii (pictured) of Tahiti after he was suspended for a year by FIFA for breaching strict anti-corruption rules.
Brisard subsequently compiled a 24-page report, entitled Project Airtime, summarising his investigation and concluding that The Sunday Times allegations constituted “a plot” against Temarii, as well as alleging that an undercover video posted on the newspaper’s website last October was a “gross fabrication” containing “major cuts, edits and falsifications of the original video by the Sunday Times.”
Geraldine Lesieur, a Paris lawyer who represents Temarii, told Reuters that the investigation “above all, made it possible to demonstrate precisely how they [The Sunday Times] created a veritable…fabrication making it look like my client had said things he didn’t say during the interview”.
Lesieur pointed out that Temarii had been cleared by FIFA of the most serious corruption allegations against him, though he had been suspended “for minor violations of ethics rules”.
Sunday Times editor John Witherow defended his paper’s reporting on the FIFA scandal in an interview with Reuters and expressed surprise at the fact that private investigators had been looking into the affairs of “journalists who are investigating matters of public interest”.
The paper’s managing editor, Richard Caseby, added: “Claims that The Sunday Times fabricated its evidence against Reynald Temarii are utterly untrue.
“There is no evidence whatsoever to substantiate the claims…The Sunday Times investigation was clear, fair and accurate and we fully complied with FIFA’s request for assistance in its investigation.
“We note that Mr Temarii is still under suspension by FIFA.”
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