The Argentine Football Association (AFA) has rejected reports that president Claudio Tapia and treasurer Pablo Toviggino were ordered to appear before US courts, Reuters reported.
Event Context
The AFA has described the reports as “completely untrue”, strongly denying that either official had been summoned by US authorities.
“It is absolutely false to claim that Claudio Tapia or Pablo Toviggino have been summoned to testify by the United States justice system. It is also false to claim that their cell phones or any other electronic devices have been seized,” the association said in a statement.
The federation did acknowledge that a third party had been summoned to appear before a US grand jury and could be asked to provide evidence concerning several individuals, including officials from the organization.
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However, it did not identify the individual and emphasized that neither Tapia nor Toviggino was the subject of the legal action.
The controversy emerged after Argentine outlet Infobae reported that the two AFA officials had been stopped by federal agents at John F. Kennedy International Airport on Monday morning before boarding their flight following the World Cup final.
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The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey referred Reuters’ inquiries to the FBI, which declined to comment on the matter.
Team Analysis
The AFA, however, rejected those claims, stating “The document in question does not impose any personal measure on the President of the AFA or its Treasurer, does not order their appearance, does not impose any procedural obligation on them, and does not record any seizure or confiscation of property belonging to them.”
Infobae further reported that U.S. investigators are examining more than $300 million in AFA-related commercial agreements as part of broader scrutiny into Argentine football finances following December money-laundering raids.
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According to the report, authorities requested access to Tapia’s electronic devices and questioned both officials while they were on the airport tarmac.
Reuters also reported that, according to an airport witness, federal agents spoke with Tapia and Toviggino for roughly 30 minutes aboard a bus parked on the tarmac before the Argentine delegation departed.
