5 Jun 2015

Former FIFA official 'fears for his life'

11:15 am on 5 June 2015

The former FIFA Vice President Jack Warner, a central figure in world football's deepening scandal, has vowed to tell investigators all he knows about corruption within the sport's governing body.

In a paid political address entitled "The gloves are off", broadcast in Trinidad and Tobago, Warner said he feared for his life, but would reveal everything he knows.

He said he had instructed his lawyers to contact law enforcement officials both in his homeland and overseas.

"There can be no reversal of the course of action I've now embarked upon," said Warner, a prominent local politician and businessman.

He said some of the documents he had related to financial dealings with FIFA, some of which are being investigated by U.S. authorities.

But he also said he had documents linking FIFA with the 2010 Trinidad and Tobago government elections.

Former FIFA vice president Jack Warner (left) and outgoing FIFA president Sepp Blatter.

Former FIFA vice president Jack Warner (left) and outgoing FIFA president Sepp Blatter. Photo: Photosport

"I have kept quiet, fearing this day might come. I will do so no more," he said. "I will no longer keep secrets for them who actively seek to destroy the country."

Warner is among more than a dozen officials charged by the U.S. Department of Justice with running a criminal enterprise that involved more than $200 million in bribes.

Prosecutors say Warner solicited bribes worth millions and charged him with offences including racketeering and bribery.

His address came hours after American Chuck Blazer, another former FIFA executive committee member, admitted in court to taking bribes relating to a range of tournaments, including the 1998 and 2010 World Cups.