Jeffrey Webb pleads not guilty for part in FIFA corruption scandal
Saturday 18 July 2015 21:44, UK
Former FIFA vice president Jeffrey Webb pleaded not guilty in a New York court on Saturday in connection with a massive international corruption scandal.
Webb, 50, agreed to be released from custody on a £6.4m bond, and he has relinquished his passport to the FBI as well as agreeing to staying within a 20 mile radius of the US federal court in Brooklyn.
He is the first former official from football's governing body to appear in a New York court in connection with the sweeping international scandal that has rocked the sporting world.
FIFA president Sepp Blatter decided to step down from his role, after being re-elected in early June, admitting his mandate from world football did not feel complete.
Webb was flown to New York from Switzerland earlier this week, the only one of seven FIFA officials arrested in Zurich not to contest extradition.
His wife, a US citizen, her parents and grandmother signed his bond papers in court. Six other members of Webb's extended family will also sign his bond application.
In all, 14 defendants stand accused of soliciting and receiving more than £96m in bribes and kickbacks across 24 years.
US Attorney General Loretta Lynch unveiled the 47-count indictment in May, charging soccer officials and marketing executives with racketeering, wire fraud and money laundering conspiracies.
Besides serving as FIFA vice president, Webb was president of the Cayman Islands football association as well as CONCACAF, which oversees the sport in North and Central America and the Caribbean.
