Argentine father and son admit paying millions in bribes in Fifa graft case
Hugo and Mariano Jinkis admitted paying football officials to secure lucrative media and marketing rights for major South American tournaments.
Argentine sports businessmen Hugo Jinkis and his son, Mariano Jinkis, have admitted paying millions of dollars in bribes to South American football officials as part of a long-running Fifa corruption case, according to US prosecutors.
The payments were made to secure lucrative media and marketing rights for major tournaments and matches, including the Copa América, Copa Libertadores, World Cup qualifiers and international friendlies.
The Jinkises, who owned Argentine sports marketing company Full Play, reached a deferred prosecution agreement with the US Department of Justice over bribery charges filed in 2015.
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According to US prosecutors, the pair paid football officials to obtain television and sponsorship rights for major competitions. The alleged payments began in the 1990s and continued until 2015.
The New York Times reported that the father and son travelled from Argentina to New York for secret negotiations with federal prosecutors.
They are expected to appear before a federal court in Brooklyn on Thursday. The agreement could allow them to avoid prison, although its financial terms have not been disclosed.
The case is part of a decade-long US investigation into corruption in international football that has resulted in more than two dozen convictions.
The Jinkises had remained in Argentina for years after the charges were filed and avoided extradition to the United States before travelling to the country for negotiations with prosecutors.
