Hacker threatens to release documents to prove Manchester City breached FFP rules, confident authorities will find ‘criminal relevancy’
Football Leaks hacker Rui Pinto has claimed that he has emails that would prove Manchester City beached FFP rules. City have been charged with 115 cases of FFP breach, but the Manchester club remain confident that they'd be proven not guilty in the November hearing.
Pinto, though, claims otherwise. He shared some hacked emails from City officials in 2019 but has kept most of the documents secret. He has now vowed to release them. The 35-year-old told Offshore-alert Marbella press conference (via The Sun):
"The Man City releases showed amounts of money being paid into by the club that were not mentioned to the football authorities. These documents are part of the Premier League investigation into City."
Pinto added:
"I have now handed five hard drives to French and German authorities with millions of documents, including more on City, and I have described what is on each. I am confident they'll find criminal relevancy."
A legal representative of Pinto confirmed that they have asked the investigation team to release the massive documents regarding the Manchester City FFP breach case.
Pinto first came into notice when he released 18 million documents related to football. He used to go by the moniker 'John' back then. His identity was later revealed, and the hacker faced 377 different charges in Portugal, including hacking and extortion.
Pinto was handed a four-year-ban as a result. His latest revelations could once again send shockwaves through the football world.
Manchester City chairman terms allegations against club as 'frustrating'
Manchester City have been one of the most successful English clubs of the modern era. They have been successful domestically and also in European football.
However, the FFP breach charges have always loomed large over their success. City chairman Khaldoun Al-Mubarak recently shared his frustration, saying:
"It's frustrating. There's a process we have to go through. I've always repeated. Let's be judged by the facts, not by claims and counter claims."
City have been accused of breaching the Premier League's Associated Party Transaction rules. The club have also appealed for ending the rule.