Updated 5pm with MFA statement
A football player and a former player were fined €30,000 between them after a court found them guilty of illegal betting on football matches.
Magistrate Victor Axiak handed down two separate judgments in which he found retired footballer Rio Micallef, of Marsa, and Marsa FC footballer Lydon Micallef, of Naxxar, guilty of their involvement in illegal betting when they did not have a licence.
Both footballers were immediately suspended by the Malta Football Association, pending the outcome of disciplinary procedures by the MFA.
The court heard how, in January 2021, police received a report about corruption in sports that involved a certain Rudger Scerri, a former member of the Attard football club committee.
During investigations, police seized Scerri’s phone and found chats with the two accused that showed they had been organising betting on football matches when they did not have a license to do so.
Police analysed 1,500 pages of WhatsApp chats in which the three men spoke about commissions to be paid from Scerri to Rio and Lydon Micallef.
The latter was more involved that Rio Micallef, which was why the magistrate handed down a €10,000 fine to Rio Micallef while Lydon Micallef was ordered to pay €20,000. The fines are payable to the Gaming Authority.
Last year Scerri was jailed for six months and interdicted for life for match-fixing. During his arraignment in January 2021, Scerri had been charged with involvement in the manipulation of a sporting event, failing to pass on information to the police authorities, as well as conducting unlicensed gaming, namely taking bets. He had pleaded guilty.
Scerri had been arrested after the police, acting on a tip-off, raided the residence he had been sharing with his girlfriend.
Some €20,000 to €30,000 were confiscated in the raid, along with electronic devices. As a result of the match-fixing scandal, the club had been stripped of nine points, fined €1,000 and prohibited from participating in international tournaments for five years.