Yeo Moriba has emerged as a pivotal witness in the Pogba case, as proceedings commenced on Tuesday, November 26. Sitting in the courtroom, Yeo is both the mother of the alleged victim, Paul Pogba, and one of the five defendants, her brother Mathias.
Since Tuesday, six associates of Paul Pogba, including his elder brother, have been on trial at the Paris Criminal Court for kidnapping, unlawful detention, and attempted extortion. In the front row sit the five defendants, childhood friends of Paul Pogba along with his older brother Mathias. Behind them, dressed in traditional black and green attire, is the matriarch of the Pogba family. Yeo Moriba, 54, reportedly “tenses up” when recalling the days in the summer of 2022 when several individuals pressured her to persuade Paul Pogba to pay several million euros, according to “Le Parisien”.
The scandal erupted in late August 2022 when a video circulated on social media featuring Mathias Pogba, where he promised revelations about his younger brother, Paul. In a second video, the elder brother accused the French international of having used witchcraft against Kylian Mbappé. “Recent statements made by Mathias Pogba… add to threats and attempts at organized extortion against Paul Pogba,” defended Paul Pogba’s lawyers.
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The six defendants have been appearing since Tuesday, November 26, for their roles in blackmail, coercion, and unlawful detention under the threat of firearms, aimed at extorting €13 million from the international player. Yeo Moriba has become a key witness, being both the mother of the victim and one of the five accused.
The Pogba matriarch was the first in the family to rise as an international Football player, representing the Guinean women’s national team, as noted by “Jeune Afrique”. “At school, there were numerous women’s sports disciplines, but no football section. Our coach asked, ‘Why not?’. He selected a few women, and we started training…. I climbed the ranks from inter-school competitions to the national selection,” she told the publication.
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Her three sons, Mathias, Florentin, and Paul, have all also been internationals. Football is a family affair. Twins Florentin and Mathias have been repeatedly selected to play for the Guinean national team. Paul Pogba was a world champion in 2018 with the French team.
These journeys echo the story of their mother. Born in 1970 in Conakry, Yeo Moriba moved to France at the age of 19 and married Antoine Pogba, who was 30 years her senior and a professor of electronics. She divorced a few years later and raised her three sons alone. Yeo Moriba juggled various jobs – cashier, chambermaid, cleaner. “I had to work to take care of my children; I had no other choice,” she summed up in an interview with France Info.
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For Yeo Moriba, blood ties continue to matter more than anything. “I know nothing more important… All I wish is for us to stay together. The Pogba clan,” she expressed last February in an interview with “Jeune Afrique”. On “Sept à Huit,” she assured that her son Mathias had also been manipulated. “He was threatened; I can swear it,” she stated. “To me, they are both victims,” she concluded.
