The ticketing firm at the centre of a World Cup scalping scandal was not in contact with its chief executive who disappeared after a Brazilian court ordered his arrest, it said yesterday.

MATCH Services executive Ray Whelan was filmed last week by security cameras leaving a luxury beachside hotel in Rio de Janeiro.

Police arrived shortly afterwards having gone to the hotel to arrest him in a probe over the illegal resale of World Cup tickets.

Ten other suspects, part of an alleged scalping ring at the centre of the investigation, are in custody. Whelan had been arrested earlier in the week but released pending a court order.

The group is alleged to have illegally resold tickets originally allocated to soccer federations and other VIPs. Brazilian police say the ring aimed to earn up to 200 million reais ($90 million).

Swiss hospitality company MATCH is contracted by FIFA to arrange ticketing and hospitality packages for the World Cup.

MATCH defended Whelan in a statement saying it did not regard him as a fugitive because he remained with his lawyer and the terms of his previous release did not restrict his movement.

“We believe that any accused in Brazil has the fundamental right to resist a coercion that he believes to be arbitrary and illegal,” it said.

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