Honduran ex-president bailed in FIFA corruption case

Former Honduran president Rafael Callejas was released on bail Thursday, two days after pleading not guilty in a New York court over his alleged role in the corruption scandal shaking FIFA.

Callejas, president of Honduras from 1990 to 1994 and head of the country's football federation until August, faces eight US charges of racketeering, fraud and money laundering.

The 72-year-old Callejas, a current member of FIFA's Television and Marketing Committee, was released on bail of $4 million, his son Lisandro Flores -- who made the payment in a Brooklyn court -- told AFP.

Callejas left Honduras on Monday on a private jet to face justice in the United States.

He is accused of receiving $1.6 million in bribes between March 2011 and January 2013 for broadcast rights of games played by the Honduran national team.

A total of 39 people and two companies have been charged by US authorities in connection with the scandal at FIFA, football's graft-mired world governing body.
Source: AFP