Spanish Police Break Up Alleged Match-Fixing Ring

January 10, 2019 | By New York Tennis Magazine Staff
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Spanish police announced on Thursday the break-up of an alleged match-fixing ring, and the arrest of 15 people on Wednesday.

In all, 83 people were implicated in the match-fixing ring, 28 of whom are professional players in the ITF Futures and Challenger ranks.

 “Fifteen people have been arrested, among them the heads of the organization, and another 68 are under investigation,” the Guardia Civil, the Spanish police force, said. “Of those 83, 28 are professional tennis players who have either been detained or investigated—one of whom took part in the last U.S. Open.”

According to the Guardia Civil, who conducted the investigation along with Europol and the Spanish tax office, the ring had been operating since at least February 2017. As a result of the investigation, 42 bank counts were frozen and multiple properties confiscated.

“A group of Armenian individuals used a professional player who served as the link between them and the other members of the network,” Guardia Civil went on to say in the statement. “Once the bribe had been paid, the Armenians headed for the match venues to use their overwhelming muscle to make sure that the player kept their end of the deadly. They then gave the order for bets to be laid both nationally and internationally.”

 


New York Tennis Magazine Staff
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