The United States has asked Switzerland to extradite seven FIFA
officials arrested on corruption charges in May, Swiss authorities have
said.
Formal extradition requests were submitted on Wednesday, the Swiss Federal Office of Justice (FOJ) said.
The seven top FIFA executives arrested in Zurich are among 14
officials indicted on charges of “rampant, systemic, and deep-rooted”
corruption, the BBC reports.
The charges follow a major inquiry by the U.S Federal Bureau
of Investigation.
The FOJ said Zurich police, acting on its behalf, would give the seven officials a hearing over the extradition requests.
The officials and their lawyers would have 14 days to respond to the
request, which could be extended “if sufficient grounds exist,” the FOJ
statement said.
After that, the FOJ would give its decision “within a few weeks”, but
warned of a lengthy process as any ruling could be challenged in both
the federal criminal court and the federal supreme court.
Jeffrey Webb, FIFA vice-president in charge of North and Central
America, was among those arrested by Swiss police in a raid on a luxury
hotel in the early hours of May 27
They are currently being held in prisons around the Zurich region.
The suspects are among 14 defendants the U.S has charged with racketeering, wire fraud, and money laundering conspiracies.
