Two St George's players plead guilty to accepting bribes

Two football players yesterday admitted in court to accepting bribes of €1,000 each.

Goalkeeper Andrea Gatt, 29 and Lawrence Mizzi, 28, who play for Division One club St George's FC, were given suspended jail terms and fined €500 each.

St George's lost 3-2 to neighbouring rivals Vittoriosa Stars at the Hibs Ground last Saturday. The court heard how the men had been approached by a third person who is still under investigation and offered €1,000 each. An investigation was launched on Sunday morning.

Magistrate Doreen Clarke took into consideration the men's early guilty plea and jailed Gatt for one year suspended for four years and Mizzi for 18 months suspended for four years. They were also fined €500 each.

News that the two St George's players had been arraigned and sentenced in court yesterday prompted the Malta FA to summon the media for a news conference in which they explained the circumstances leading to the police investigation.

Joe Mifsud, the Malta FA president, told reporters that at the last MFA annual general meeting, he vowed to step up the fight against corruption during the current season. At the time, Dr Mifsud also revealed that an attempt had been made to fix the UEFA Cup match between Marsaxlokk and Croatia's Slaven Belupo and, at a later news conference, he named former FIFA referee Joe Attard and Albanian coach Ilir Pelinku as two of the main suspects.

Yesterday, Dr Mifsud said that Attard and Pelinku, both of whom have been suspended indefinitely by the Malta FA pending the outcome of an internal inquiry, will be charged in court next month.

Shifting his focus to the more recent case linked with Saturday's St George's vs Vittoriosa Stars derby from the Division One league, Dr Mifsud said: "This time we are dealing with a bribery case directly connected to local football, specifically Saturday's match between St George's and Vittoriosa Stars.

"This case has been solved in 48 hours and two persons have been charged and sentenced today.

"It transpires that St George's officials received information that some of their players had been approached to sell the game. These officials brought the matter to the attention of Peter Fenech (the MFA vice-president) who subsequently informed me of what he had just learned.

"I immediately instructed Dr Fenech to refer the case to the police who immediately launched an investigation and called in several persons for questioning."

Apart from the two St George's players, another person, believed to be an official of Vittoriosa Stars, was still being held in police custody yesterday evening in connection with this case.

"I take the opportunity to thank Dr Fenech and St George's for taking immediate action," Dr Mifsud said.

"I'd also like to express the MFA's gratitude to the Police Commissioner (John Rizzo) and Inspector Angelo Gafà for the efficient way in which they handled this case. Their commendable efforts also reflect the police's willingness to co-operate with the MFA in the battle against corruption in football. Furthermore, this case also sends a strong warning to those who perpetrate bribery.

"Today, I have also instructed the chairman of the MFA Board to Investigate Corrupt Practices to open an inquiry into this case."

Dr Fenech also paid a glowing tribute to the police, especially Inspector Gafà, for working round the clock since early Sunday morning to bring the culprits to justice.

The Malta FA vice-president claimed that other persons have information relevant to this case. "I invite these persons to come forward and tell us what they know. The police know who these people are," he said.

Dr Fenech maintained that a concerted effort by all the stakeholders in football is needed to tackle this problem.

"Football games must be won by players on the field of play," the MFA vice-president insisted.

Dr Mifsud said players who are found guilty of taking bribes may be banned for life by the Malta FA. He reminded that clubs are also liable to punishment if their officials are involved in corruption.

Invited to comment on the punishments meted out to the two players by the Magistrates' Court yesterday, Dr Mifsud replied: "I have faith in the courts of justice."

Replying to a question on why the two persons implicated in the attempt to influence the result of the Marsaxlokk vs Slaven Belupo match last summer have yet to be arraigned in court, Dr Mifsud said: "The police have been engaged in efforts to interrogate and possibly charge another foreign-based person in connection with this case. "They have also requested the help of Interpol to get this person extradited to Malta but to my knowledge, this has failed to materialise so far."