Portsmouth manager Harry Redknapp and chief executive Peter
Storrie were among five people arrested on Wednesday by police
investigating corruption in football, the Premier League club
said.
Harry Redknapp (right),
manager of the English Premier League soccer team Portsmouth, sits
with Portsmouth Chief Executive Peter Storrie on November 24, 2004.
Redknapp and Storrie were among five people arrested on Wednesday
in an investigation into alleged corruption in English soccer, the
club said. AP
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Former Portsmouth chairman Milan Mandaric, now in charge at
Championship side Leicester City, said later via a spokesman that
he had assisted City of London police with their inquiries into a
matter that went back to 2003.
The comments closely echoed an earlier statement by Portsmouth
spokesman Gary Double, who said: "They (Redknapp and Storrie) have
been asked to help police with their enquiries concerning a matter
dating back to 2003.
"This was prior to the new owner taking control of the club at
the beginning of 2006.
"The club is fully supportive of Peter and Harry, who are
cooperating fully with City of London police in this ongoing
enquiry."
On his release from Chichester police station later on
Wednesday, Redknapp was quoted by the BBC as saying: "We all helped
the police with their inquiries but it doesn't directly concern me,
it's other people involved.
"I've been answering questions to help the police. I am not
directly concerned with their inquiries.
"They have to arrest you to talk to you, for you to be in the
police station. I think that's the end of it, it didn't directly
concern me."
A solicitor representing Redknapp and Storrie added: "The
inquiries do not relate to either of those individuals, they relate
to entirely different individuals."
Mandaric's spokesman said in a statement on Leicester City's
Website (www.lcfc.co.uk): "Mr Mandaric made himself readily
available and fully co-operated with the police inquiry.
"While the investigation remains ongoing Mr Mandaric will
continue to offer his full and total support to the police and will
refrain from making any further public statement this time."
England vacancy
Redknapp has been widely tipped in the media to be among the
contenders to replace sacked England manager Steve McClaren, but
his odds lengthened with British bookmakers after his arrest.
Earlier on Wednesday, City of London police said they had
arrested four men in locations "across the country", later
increasing that number to five.
No other details about the arrests were given other than the
ages of those detained - 69, 60, 55, 48 and 30.
"They have been arrested on suspicion of conspiracy to defraud
and false accounting. It's part of an ongoing investigation into
football corruption," the spokeswoman said, adding that it was not
linked to the Lord Stevens inquiry.
The Stevens inquiry revealed serious breaches of the game's
transfer rules and some of the findings were forwarded to the
police's economic crime department to investigate.
(Agencies via China Daily November 30, 2007)
