Criminal proceedings are piling up around the Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) club. The world learned that a separate judicial investigation was initiated, at the end of February 2024, by the Paris prosecutor’s office around the conditions of the transfer of Brazilian striker Neymar, from FC Barcelona to PSG, in 2017. This parallel investigation is being carried out to “facts likely to qualify as active and passive influence peddling” in connection with the transfer of Neymar to PSG, the Paris prosecutor’s office confirms to us.
The investigating magistrates responsible for the judicial investigation, opened in 2022 by the Paris prosecutor’s office, on the “barbouzeries” around the Parisian club and its Qatari president Nasser Al-Khelaïfi estimated that the aspect relating to the arrival of the Brazilian at the club against 222 million euros, was to be the subject of in-depth investigations.
The investigating judges thus – “by an order of February 26”, according to the prosecution – requested that this aspect be separated from the main investigation carried out for several years. “The root file relates in particular to acts of assistance for irregular stay, forgery, corruption, misappropriation of files, violation of professional secrecy”, specifies the prosecution.
Complaints for violation of investigative secrecy
Already indicted for “corruption” as part of the procedure linked to the “barbouzeries” around the club, the former director of communications of PSG (2017-2022), Jean-Martial Ribes, is indicted as part of this separate judicial investigation for “active influence peddling”. Contacted, the lawyer of the person concerned, Me Romain Vanni did not wish to comment. But he specifies that he has filed a complaint for violation of the confidentiality of the investigation.
Considering himself a victim of the actions of those involved, Mr. Al-Khelaïfi became a civil party in the so-called procedure of “ barbouzeries » and thus has access to this legal file, in which Mr. Ribes, several police officers are indicted, as well as the Franco-Algerian businessman Tayeb Benabderrahmane and Malik Nait-Liman, a former anti-terrorist police officer who became a “supporter referent” at the club of the capital. Mr. Al-Khelaïfi’s lawyers also denounce violations of the confidentiality of the investigation: “At the beginning of the year, we filed complaints for violations of investigative secrecy and professional secrecy”confirms Renaud Semerdjian, advisor to the president of PSG.
Based on the investigators’ analysis of the contents of Mr. Ribes’ mobile phone, the latter is suspected of having provided advantages and gifts, in particular tickets to matches at the Parc des Princes (Paris), to Hugues Renson , ex-deputy (La République en marche, former name of Renaissance) of the 13e Paris constituency (2017-2022) and former vice-president of the National Assembly.
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