Sarkozy Loses Appeal on Corruption Charge.

The former president of France, Nicolas Sarkozy, has lost his appeal against a prison sentence relating to corruption charges. According to the BBC, Sarkozy was sentenced to three years in prison after being found guilty of attempting to influence a judge. Sarkozy offered the judge a job in Monaco in return for information about the status of an investigation centering on allegations of whether or not the Libyan government gave money to his presidential campaign. Reuters reports that despite being sentenced to three years, two are suspended, and Sarkozy will wear an electronic tag for the other year. Sarkozy is facing several further criminal investigations, so, likely, he is not out of trouble yet.

Ukrainian Chief Supreme Court Justice Dismissed After Bribery Scandal.

Earlier this week, the chief justice of the Ukrainian supreme court was fired due to being caught up in a bribery scandal. Ukraine is in the process of cracking down on political corruption. According to a report from Reuters, while it is not immediately clear who was arrested, the current chief justice is Vsevolod Kniaziev. According to an article in The Guardian, the bribe may have been paid by a company called The Finance & Credit Group, owned by a well-known businessman called Konstiantyn Zhivago, to influence the court. If you are Kniaziev, seeing pictures of stacks of cash lined up on your living room sofa, surely that can’t be a good sign.

The Downfall and Imprisonment of Imran Khan.

Last week Imran Khan, the former prime minister of Pakistan, was arrested on corruption charges. According to a BBC report, Khan’s arrest has sparked widespread protests throughout Pakistan. He was forcibly removed from a courtroom by a heavily armed paramilitary unit while facing trial in a separate investigation involving misconduct during his time in office. In recent months, an unknown assailant has made an attempt on his life. Also, in recent months Khan has spoken out against the military’s influence in politics.

Last Friday, according to Reuters, the supreme court overturned Khan’s arrest, which called the arrest unlawful. According to a report in The Guardian, Khan believes that the military was singlehandedly responsible for his arrest. He also claims that the current Prime Minister, Shehbaz Sharif, is involved in a plot to bring him down because he does not want to face him in a future election. The big question is whether or not Khan is genuinely corrupt, or is this all politically motivated? It is probably a little of both; you don’t get into a high office in a place like Pakistan without greasing a few palms. At the same time, Sharif likely sees Khan as a threat in the future.

Odesa Mayor Arrested on Corruption Charges.

Last Thursday, the mayor of Odesa, Hennadii Trukhanov, was arrested in connection with an ongoing corruption investigation. Recently, Ukraine has been in the process of cracking down on governmental misconduct. According to Radio Free Europe Trukhanov is alleged to have embezzled roughly 2.5 million dollars from Odesa’s budget through a scheme involving the purchase of a disused factory. On Friday, according to Yahoo News Trukhabov was released on bail. While it is an encouraging sign that high-ranking government officials are being investigated over corruption allegations, Ukraine still has much to achieve, or they are serious about cracking down on governmental wrongdoing.

The EU Aims to Enhance their Anti-Corruption Protocols.

Yesterday, the European Union announced new measures to combat Anti-Corruption. This comes after a recent scandal involving allegations of influence peddling between members of the European Parliament and Qatari government officials. According to a report in The Guardian, the EU executive body plans to criminalize abuse of office, illicit enrichment, and obstruction of justice in cases of misconduct. One of the primary aims of this proposal would be to make it easier for police forces to work together in solving cases across the EU involving transnational criminal groups. This is just a proposal, and despite its importance, it may never come to fruition due to internal European politics.

Ex-Peruvian President Toledo deported from the U.S. to Face Corruption Charges.

Recently, the former Peruvian president Alejandro Toledo, who served from 2001 to 2006, arrived back in Peru after exhausting all legal avenues in the U.S. to avoid extradition. Peru is a country with a recent history of corrupt presidents; there have been no less than four former presidents that have faced serious allegations of misconduct. According to The Guardian, Toledo allegedly accepted $35 million from the notorious Brazilian construction company Odebrecht to win a construction contract to build a highway connecting Brazil and Peru. Odebrecht was involved in a massive corruption scandal in Brazil called Operation Car Wash that involved many Brazilian politicians and public figures taking bribes. Toledo will likely join Alberto Fujimori, Pablo Kuczynski, and Pedro Castillo in jail on corruption charges.

UK Government Plan to Enhance Their Transnational Crime Laws.

Recently, the UK Government announced a plan to strengthen its laws regarding transnational crime. A primary focus of this plan is to stop the flow of illicit money entering the country. The government’s press release states it will commit £400 million to combating money laundering worldwide. Despite this supposed rosy outlook, a report by The Guardian suggests that the level of commitment, both in terms of money and personnel, is not enough. Despite the language in the government report, the Guardian notes there are concerns by both politicians and think tanks that not enough is being done to stop the flow of Russian money into the UK. It strikes me that there will need to be more investment into this issue if the tap of dirty money is ever to be turned off.

Joe Tacopina: Trump’s Lawyer and Italian Football Chairman.

One of the most fascinating elements of the NYC Trump Indictment is the naming of his lawyer Joe Tacopina. Tacopina is Italian-American who was born in Brooklyn. According to an article in New York magazine, he has represented many famous clients, including Alex Rodriguez, the rapper Meek Mill, and former NYPD commissioner Bernie Kerik. He has developed a reputation as being outspoken in the media to defend his clients. Interestingly, he has developed a strong connection to Italian football in recent years. According to an article in Forbes, he first dabbled in the sport in 2011 by investing in AS Roma. After four years in Rome, he became the chairman of the Italian club Venezia. Finally, in 2021, he became the chairman of second division team SPAL, thus continuing his journey through the ranks of Italian football. It is unclear what the future will hold for him, but it has been said that many who have represented Trump in court haven’t always been paid for services rendered. I have long been interested in the confluence of sport and politics, but this is a new one on me.

Truth Social: Where Did the Money Come From?

Last week reports surfaced that federal prosecutors were looking into the finances of Truth Social, the former president Donald Trump’s social media website set up after he was banned from Twitter and Facebook. According to an article by The Guardian, questions are being raised about the source of an $8 million loan made to Trump media by Paxum bank and ES Family Trust. Paxum is owned by Anton Postolnikov, a close relation to Aleksandr Smirnov, a long-time ally of Putin, and has a reputation for providing funding to the pornography industry. This bank appears to do business with some dodgy characters. It also seems that other members of trump world, such as the president’s son Donald Trump Jr and long-time trump allies Kash Patel and Devin Nunes, may know where the money from the loan came from.

A follow-up article in The Guardian states that high-ranking executives within Trump Media are increasingly worried that they could face legal action if loans contained dirty money. One executive even suggested returning the money to avoid any potential legal proceedings. However, this was not done as the money was desperately needed to keep the company solvent. Also, according to a report from Business Insider, Truth Social is laying off employees, most likely due to cash flow issues. It is still unclear if Trump Media has committed any crimes, but the saying “Where there is smoke, there is fire” comes to mind.

Mes Que Un Corruption: the Sad Downfall of FC Barcelona.

FC Barcelona is one of the biggest clubs in world football. They are the pride of Catalonia and have supporters worldwide who follow the club religiously. In recent years Barca has assembled a collection of some of the best players in the sport, including Lionel Messi. However, they have also encountered significant financial difficulties due to overspending on the renewal of contracts of players like Messi and wasteful spending on new players. As a result, the club is saddled with €1 billion of debt.

On top of this, there have been reports of Barcelona paying money to a company run by the former vice president of the Referee’s Committee at the Royal Spanish Football Federation (RFEF). According to an article in The Athletic, Barca paid €7.8 million to DASNIL 95, a company run by Jose Maria Enriquez Negreira, to, in his words, “make sure no refereeing decisions were made against them, which is to say, for everything to be neutral.” While this quote may not be a smoking gun yet, it does open up the possibility that Barca was paying bribes to influence the outcome of matches which would call into question the trophies they have won in recent years. According to a BBC article, Real Madrid, Barca’s arch-rival, said they would support Spanish prosecutors in their investigations. There are most likely two reasons Real is interested in this case. First, they wouldn’t mind plunging Barca into another crisis and getting one over on the old enemy. Secondly, Real would be justifiably angry if it appeared that refereeing decisions denied them opportunities to win league titles. Barca has publicly denied any involvement. However, given recent events, I wouldn’t be surprised if Barca faces another crisis of their own making.