Rubiales arrested over Saudi Arabia Spanish Super Cup corruption probe
Luis Rubiales, the former Spanish football federation president at the centre of a kissing scandal with a female player, was yesterday arrested as part of a corruption investigation.
The 46-year-old former vice president of European football governing body Uefa was arrested in the Spanish capital Madrid upon landing from the Dominican Republic.
He was released soon after being detained.
The Spaniard is suspected of receiving illegal commissions relating to the relocation of the Spanish Super Cup to Saudi Arabia.
Rubiales denies wrongdoing but prosecutors want a two-and-a-half-year jail term.
Spanish broadcaster RTVE suggests that Rubiales could appear in court on Thursday.
The former RFEF chief is also set for a court date over a sexual assault accusation relating to the Fifa Women’s World Cup final last year — he could receive a jail term and a fine.
He is accused of kissing player Jenni Hermoso on the mouth in a move the player described as unwanted and demeaning.
Again, Rubiales denies wrongdoing.
The saga led to his dismissal and his case came before judges last year – his mother at one point staged a hunger strike in his defence.
Judge Francisco de Jorge, based in Madrid, who paved the way for the “kissgate” trial said in January: “The investigation has revealed the existence of solid evidence the kiss Luis Manuel Rubiales Bejar gave the player Jennifer Hermoso was not consensual and was a unilateral and surprise initiative on his part.
“Whether there was no any erotic intention or it was a result of the state of euphoria and excitement experienced as a consequence of the extraordinary sporting triumph preceding it is something that should be valued in a public trial.”