November 27 – Six men linked to former French international midfield star Paul Pogba, including one of his brothers, went on trial in Paris on Tuesday accused of blackmail, attempted extortion of millions of euros and holding the player at gunpoint.
The case is taking place without Pogba who has decided not to attend, and is set to last one week.
A judge ordered the six men to stand trial following an investigation into whether Pogba was the target of extortion by the group. Mathias Pogba is on trial “for the offenses of attempted extortion and criminal conspiracy”.
The five others allegedly demanded €13 million from the former Manchester United and Juventus player claiming he should have supported them after he became an international star.
Defence lawyers reportedly asked the court Tuesday to summon Pogba so they can question him.
During the investigation, Pogba said he paid €100,000 to the organized group, including his brother. According to French media reports, he told French investigators he had been “tricked by childhood friends” from the gritty Paris suburb where he and Mathias grew up.
He apparently also said the extortionists wanted to discredit him by claiming he asked a witch doctor to cast a spell on France teammate Kylian Mbappé. Pogba denied the allegation.
The case, which has shocked the French football public, became public after Mathias Pogba posted threats on social media to share “explosive” revelations about his brother, Mbappé and Paul Pogba’s agent Rafaela Pimenta. Mathias Pogba was also a professional player who spent most of his career with lower-tier teams in Europe.
Once the world’s most expensive player, Pogba, who has been plagued by injury throughout his colourful and controversial career, has made headlines in recent years more often for his off-field problems than for his undoubted ability.
Earlier this month, Juventus said it had come to “a mutual agreement” with Pogba to cancel his contract despite the France World Cup winner having a doping ban slashed last month to 18 months following an appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport.
Pogba, who tested positive for testosterone in August last year and was initially handed the maximum punishment by Italy’s anti-doping court, is now free to resume his career in March.
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