Former Honduran president Rafael Callejas pleads guilty to taking bribes

Former Honduran president, Rafael Callejas, has pleaded guilty to conspiracy charges, admitting he solicited hundreds of thousands of dollars in bribes in connection with a Fifa corruption scandal.

Callejas, who was a member of Fifa’s television and marketing committee, pleaded guilty to racketeering conspiracy and wire fraud conspiracy in a New York federal court on Monday.

The 72-year-old, who was president of Honduras between 1990 and 1994, will be sentenced on 5 August and could face up to 40 years in prison.

Callejas told US Magistrate Judge Robert M Levy: “I knew it was wrong for me to ask for and to accept such undisclosed payments.”

He previously pleaded not guilty to the charges in a US court appearance in December.

The US Department of Justice said in a statement that Callejas had negotiated and accepted bribes in exchange for using his position as president of the Honduran football federation to award contracts for media and marketing rights to World Cup qualifier matches.

"Bribe payments totalling hundreds of thousands of dollars were sent to a bank account I controlled," he said.

Callejas said he distributed a significant portion of his bribes to delegates of the Honduran football federation so he could remain president, a position he held from 2002 to August 2015.

In total, about 20 soccer officials have been indicted on charges related to the US investigation of corruption in the sport.
Source: AFP