Jack Warner’s legal battle against extradition to the United States on corruption charges could ‘possibly last years’, the Attorney General of Trinidad has said.
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The former FIFA vice-president is currently on bail in Trinidad after being one of the people indicted by US authorities over allegations of racketeering, wire fraud and money-laundering.
Warner has denied any wrongdoing, claiming during a televised address in Trinidad on Wednesday night he would reveal an “avalanche” of documents in support of his case.
Attorney General of Trinidad Garvin Nicholas claims the complex legal nature of the case was unlikely to resolve itself quickly.
Justice Minister of Trinidad and Tobago tells @SkyNews Jack Warner “should get on a plane to New York and hand himself in immediately” #FIFA
— Sky News Newsdesk (@SkyNewsBreak) June 7, 2015
When asked if Trinidad would like to be rid of Mr Warner “once and for all”, Nicholas told Britain’s Channel 4 News: “We would like to get rid of the problem, that is accusations being made against a national that is bringing the country into disrepute, but we would also want to ensure that all the rights for any individual are maintained.”
On the subject of extradition to the US, Nicholas added: “The process allows for many appeals, if there are grounds for such appeals, so again it is difficult to say whether it will last a month or longer… possibly (years), depending on the appeals process.”
Warner was also accused on Sunday of asking Egypt for a $7m bribe for votes to host the 2010 World Cup, while the BBC have claimed that the 72-year-old Trinidadian pocketed a $10m payment made by South Africa through FIFA which was intended to pay for football development for the African diaspora in the Caribbean.
In the latest allegation against Warner, former Egyptian sports minister Aley Eddine Helal said: “Warner said he could guarantee us seven votes… He asked for one million dollars for each vote.”
Egypt was a candidate to host the 2010 World Cup, but it received no votes in the 2004 FIFA ballot and South Africa was eventually chosen to host the tournament.
Trinidad’s sports minister Brent Sancho, a former international footballer, said he was appalled by the revelations.
“He must face justice, he must answer all of these questions. Justice has to be served,” said Sancho, describing the revelations as a “travesty”.
