Ex-CBF President Prepares for Defeat in Switzerland and Extradition to the US

08/12/2015 - 09h58

While José Maria Marin, the former president of the Brazilian Football Confederation (CBF), continues to fight extradition to the United States in the Swiss courts, his legal team are preparing for the possibility that he will have to respond to his charges on American soil.

Marin has been detained in Zurich since May 27.

He is accused of fraud, money laundering and conspiracy, in a bribery scheme related to television rights of football competitions such as the Copa América and Copa do Brasil.

Folha has learnt that Marin's legal team considers defeat in the first Swiss court that will hear the case a certainty, paving the way for his extradition.

Originally, his lawyers had planned to appeal to the Swiss Supreme Court in order to prevent extradition. However, the strategy has been revised, and Marin looks set to give way and respond to the charges in the United States.

On Tuesday (11), Marin laid out his defense in Zurich. He objected to the extradition request, arguing that there is no conclusive evidence for the accusations made, and that the crime of which he is accused does not exist in Brazil.

However, in the last two weeks, Marin has been in contact with the American authorities, negotiating the conditions of his eventual extradition. He also has contracted two law firms in New York to help prepare his defense.

As Marin owns property in New York, his team believes it may be possible to win him the right to serve any sentence under house arrest, with an electronic tag.

Of the 14 men arrested by the FBI in May, two have been extradited to the US: the Concacaf director Jeffrey Webb, and the Argentine businessman Alejandro Burzaco. Both are currently detained in New York.

Translated by TOM GATEHOUSE

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	Eduardo Knapp/Folhapress
	Former president of the Brazilian Football Confederation (CBF), Jose Maria Marin