Asian Football Confederation Acting President Zhang Jilong listens to a reporter’s questions during an Interpol conference to discuss match-fixing, in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia on February 20. AP
KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia—Interpol’s chief says Singaporean police have notified authorities in Italy that a suspected match-fixer is flying to Milan.
Ronald Noble, Interpol’s US-born secretary general, said Thursday the man was allegedly working for Singaporean businessman Tan Seet Eng — known as Dan Tan — for whom Italian authorities have issued an arrest warrant.
Noble did not identify the man while speaking at a match-fixing conference in Malaysia, saying only that Singaporean police passed the travel information to Interpol, which will decide whether to detain or interrogate him when he lands in Milan later Thursday.
Noble said the suspect was not Singaporean, but police in the Southeast Asian city-state observed him boarding the plane there. Noble did not elaborate on why he might be traveling to Italy.
The man is believed to be “a member of the Tan Seet Eng criminal organization,” Noble said.
Tan is accused of heading a crime syndicate that made millions of dollars betting on rigged Italian football matches. Italian officials have been unable to take Tan into custody as the arrest warrant cannot be served while he’s in Asia.
FIFA head of security Ralf Mutschke said earlier this week at the Malaysian conference that he hopes Tan will be brought to face the courts with the help of Singaporean authorities.
Singapore’s police have said they are reviewing information submitted by the Italian authorities in Tan’s case before deciding what action to take.
Tan’s former associate, Wilson Raj Perumal, has alleged to Italian investigators that Tan placed syndicate wagers on fixed games using Asia-based online betting sites via intermediaries in China.
A report by the European Union’s police agency earlier this month said organized crime gangs, including ones in Asia, have fixed or tried to fix hundreds of football matches around the world.
Europol said its 18-month review found 380 suspicious matches in Europe and another 300 questionable games outside the continent, mainly in Africa, Asia and South and Central America.