Korean prosecutors indict 12 over match-fixing
Reuters - Thursday 09 June 2011, 05:19
SEOUL - Prosecutors in South Korea said on
Thursday they had indicted 12 key figures implicated in a
match-fixing scandal that has rocked professional football in the
country, local media reported.
Five more active players were among those indicted in the
southeastern town of Changwon in a further blow to the K-League,
according to Yonhap news agency.
A total of 10 players, along with gambling brokers, are
alleged to have been part of the match-fixing ring, with eight
of the players from a single club.
"Investigations on three more games suspected of
match-fixing are going on," Yonhap quoted Gwak Gyu-hong of the
prosecutor's office in Changwon as saying.
Officials declined to comment when asked about the case by
Reuters.
A midfielder for the team is accused of receiving 120
million won ($110,000) in exchange for helping his side lose a
match, Yonhap reported.
Prosecutors believe the player shared money with seven team
mates in return for their help in throwing a K-League Cup game.
South Korea's government has promised stiffer punishments
for those found guilty of match-fixing, including hefty fines,
life-time bans and up to seven years in prison.
State-run sports bookmaker Sports Toto has stopped taking
bets on matches at the request of K-League club owners.
The K-League Cup, a relatively minor competition, is thought
to be more susceptible to match-rigging as games are held
midweek attracting fewer fans and with clubs sometimes fielding
weakened teams.