Follow usLisbon court imposed a four-year sentence on Rui Pinto. The Portuguese, creator of the Football Leaks website, was convicted of attempted extortion and illegal access to data and correspondence, judge Margarida Alves announced.
The 34-year-old former history student and self-taught computer specialist created the site in 2015 to share confidential information such as transfer fees and deals between sports organizations, reports Reuters.
The whistleblower was detained in Hungary in January 2019, although he was later released from house arrest and placed in the witness protection program. The process started in September 2020.
Rui Pinto foi condenado a quatro anos de prisão com pena suspensa por 9 crimes (um de tentativa de extorsão, cinco de acesso ilegítimo e três de violação de correspondência) no caso ‘Football Leaks’, contra a Doyen.
Foi também amnistiado de 79 crimes pela lei da amnistia, graças… pic.twitter.com/N7rDQQ0qBB
— B24 (@B24PT) September 11, 2023
The Portuguese faced 90 charges, including unauthorized access to data, breach of correspondence and attempted extortion. While acknowledging the release of more than 70 million documents, he claims he acted in the public interest.
Rui Pinto’s targets included Sporting, the Portuguese Football Federation, investment fund Doyen Sports and law firm PLMJ.
