Soccer body CONCACAF casts out executives implicated in bribe scheme

By Mark Hosenball WASHINGTON, May 28 (Reuters) - The organization that governs soccer in North and Central America on Thursday announced it had dismissed its president and was placing on leave a top executive who matched the description of a "co-conspirator" in a U.S. corruption sweep against global soccer officials. The Confederation of North, Central American and the Caribbean Football Association (CONCACAF) said it had "provisionally dismissed" its president Jeffrey Webb, who was among 14 top global soccer and sports marketing executives named as defendants by the U.S. Department of Justice on Wednesday. CONCACAF said in a statement that it had placed its general secretary, Enrique Sanz, on a leave of absence "to begin immediately." The indictment issued by federal prosecutors on Wednesday said that "Co-Conspirator #4" was appointed CONCACAF's general secretary in July 2012, after serving as vice president of Traffic USA, a sports marketing company. In its Thursday statement, CONCACAF described Sanz as its general secretary. In July 2012, CONCACAF had announced that Colombian-born Sanz took the job after working for 15 years as vice president of Traffic USA. Joseph DiMaria, a lawyer for Sanz, told Reuters: "Mr. Sanz and his family are focusing on his health issues at this time." CONCACAF did not reply to an email requesting comment. The indictment referred to 25 anonymous "co-conspirators", most of whom were described only in vague terms. The co-conspirators were not charged with crimes, but could be cooperating with authorities, be charged later, or both. The indictment says that before joining CONCACAF, co-conspirator #4 had participated, on Traffic's behalf, in negotiations to acquire media and marketing rights to 2018 and 2022 World Cup qualifying matches organized by the Carribean Football Union (CFU), a local soccer body. Near the end of the negotiations, the indictment says the conspirator met with Costas Takkas, an associate of Webb. It said the co-conspirator agreed to pay a $3 million bribe to Webb to ensure the CFU contract would be awarded to Traffic USA. The indictment says that Traffic entered into a $23 million contract with the CFU in April 2012 for exclusive marketing rights for the group's world cup qualifiers. CONCACAF also said it was provisionally dismissing Eduardo Li, the president of Costa Rica's national soccer federation. Li was named as a defendant in the criminal charges, as was Takkas. Bank of Nova Scotia an official partner of CONCACAF, said on Thursday it would review its sponsorship ties following the indictments. (Additional reporting by David Adams in Miami and Frank Pingue in Toronto. Editing by Stuart Grudgings; editing by Stuart Grudgings.)