World soccer body FIFA has handed a five-year ban to former Sierra Leone Football Association (SLFA) official Abu Bakarr Kabba for accepting bribes in relation to the manipulation of international matches.
FIFA said in a statement on Friday that the adjudicatory chamber of the Independent Ethics Committee had also fined the former official 50,000 Swiss francs ($50,720).
“The formal ethics proceedings against Mr Kabba…. stem from an extensive investigation into various international matches (attempted to be) manipulated for betting purposes by Mr Wilson Raj Perumal,” said FIFA.
The proceedings were initiated on 11 July 2018, the statement added. However, no information was given of the games he had been sanctioned for.
The five-year ban on Kabba covers all football-related activities (administrative, sports or any other) at national and international level and came into force on Friday.
The long-running investigation into convicted Singapore-based match-fixer Perumal’s activities has already produced life bans for players and former officials.
Former Botswana Football Association (BFA) general secretary, Mooketsi ‘Tosh’ Kgotlele was banned from soccer-related activities earlier this week for accepting bribes to manipulate an international friendly.
Togolese Football Association official Kokou Hougnimon Fagla, who was also a referee, was banned from soccer-related activities last March for similar offences.
Three African current and former players were banned for life in April.
FIFA named them at the time as Ibrahim Kargbo (Sierra Leone), Hellings Mwakasungula (Malawi) and Seidath Tchomogo (Benin).
Perumal was given a two-year jail sentence by a Finnish court in 2011 for bribing players and referees to fix matches.
