Federal Justice received a request from the prosecutor's office to deepen a sensitive investigation that once again has as its central focus the Argentine Football Association, the mafia-like Claudio "Chiqui" Tapia and his partners, among them Javier Faroni. The request, submitted to Judge Marcelo Aguinsky, aims to determine the existence of an international network of financial intermediaries that, between 2021 and 2025, allegedly channeled outside the Argentine banking system more than 300 million dollars corresponding to AFA's income.
According to the filing, the scheme would involve central figures in the current leadership structure. In addition to the unpresentable boss of national football and the owner of Deportick, among those named are:
- Leandro Petersen (head of AFA's commercial and marketing area)
- Érica Gillette (administrator of TourProdEnter LLC);
- Andrés Scornik (controlling party of Global FC LLC)
- Marcelo Fabián Ramón Saracco (partner of Odeoma Gestión SL and financial operator linked to AFA)
- Melchor Amoedo Merlín (Spanish partner of Odeoma Gestión SL)
The prosecutor's office stated that diversions of funds to offshore companies and private activities with no direct relation to football were detected. Among the mentioned movements is a transfer from TourProdEnter for 11,587 dollars to Carbello SRL, a firm dedicated to the purchase of show jumping horses, in addition to transfers made by Faroni to Horses Services, specialized in equine transport, and to Equestrian, dedicated to the purchase and sale of horses.
The legal motion requests determining the link between the accused and the national and international companies involved, by pointing out a "common denominator" in the operations. For Judge Aguinsky, the core of the investigation is centered on AFA and on the income circuit caused by sponsors and commercial agreements.
