TURKEY: Eighteen of 21 suspects have been arrested a week after the Turkish Football Federation suspended 149 referees following an investigation into betting allegations against them.
Several referees, assistant referees and the chairman of an unnamed football club have arrest orders made out against them by Turkish prosecutors following an investigation into allegations that they influenced the outcome of a match.” These are besides other allegations.
Eighteen of 21 suspects have been detained following coordinated early morning raids, according to state-owned Anadolu news agency and confirmation by the Istanbul Chief Prosecutor’s Office. The 17 referees were arrested in Istanbul and 11 other provinces.
The arrests came on the heels of the suspension of 149 referees and assistant referees by the Turkish Football Federation (TFF) and assistant referees following an investigation which found numerous bets being placed on football matches which officials working in Turkey’s professional leagues were in charge of.
While TFF President Ibrahim Haciosmanoglu described the situation as a “moral crisis in Turkish football,” the referees came back with a statement of their own on Wednesday,calling the allegations “outrageous.”
They insisted none of them had bet on a match they officiated, although some said they had bet a long time ago, when they were amateur referees.
News media such as the Cumhuriyet newspaper added thatMurat Ozkaya, president of Turkish Super Lig club Eyupspor; and Fatih Sarac, former owner of Kasimpasa, were also being questioned, while one person might be arrested for spreading misleading information on social media.
Last week, TFF President Ibrahim Haciosmanoglu announced that a government agency had uncovered widespread illegal betting on major football matches across the country, explaining that 371 of 571 of these active referees held betting accounts, 152 of whom allegedly placed bets on football matches. Of those, 22 refereed in the top league.
One referee had allegedly bet 18,227 times and 42 referees were alleged to have bet on more than 1,000 football matches each.
In its own independent probe, the TFF’s disciplinary board has already imposed bans ranging from 8-12 months on 149 officials for involvement in betting. ‑Agencies
