Jinkis Fugitives Seek Plea Deal With Brooklyn Prosecutors

Hugo Jinkis, 81, and his son Mariano Jinkis, 51, traveled from Buenos Aires to New York with their wives and began discussions with federal prosecutors in Brooklyn about potential plea agreements. The investigation stems from a May 2015 indictment charging soccer officials and company executives with racketeering, wire fraud, and money laundering related to broadcast and marketing rights. Prosecutors allege sports-marketing firms paid millions in bribes to Latin American soccer officials to secure television and marketing contracts. U.S. investigators followed bank transfers, shell companies, and intermediaries to build the alleged scheme. Hugo and Mariano surrendered to Argentine authorities in 2015, and Argentina blocked U.S. extradition efforts in 2016. The case has produced dozens of guilty pleas, trial convictions, and financial penalties, including a March 2023 jury conviction involving Full Play Group S.A. and a former 21st Century Fox executive.

"The investigation traces back to an indictment unsealed in May 2015 that charged soccer officials and company executives with racketeering, wire fraud and money laundering tied to the sale of broadcast and marketing rights. Prosecutors say sports-marketing firms paid millions of dollars in bribes to Latin American soccer officials in exchange for television and marketing contracts. The case quickly went global as U.S. investigators tracked bank transfers, shell companies and intermediaries to piece together the alleged scheme."

"According to the U.S. Attorney's Office in Brooklyn, the investigation traces back to an indictment unsealed in May 2015 that charged soccer officials and company executives with racketeering, wire fraud and money laundering tied to the sale of broadcast and marketing rights. Prosecutors say sports-marketing firms paid millions of dollars in bribes to Latin American soccer officials in exchange for television and marketing contracts."

"As reported by The New York Times, Hugo and Mariano surrendered to Argentine authorities in 2015, and Argentina later blocked U.S. efforts to extradite them in 2016. The paper reports that the two boarded a commercial flight from Buenos Aires to New York with their wives and are now discussing a potential plea agreement with Brooklyn prosecutors. If those talks result in a deal, it would finally bring two long-sought defendants into an American courtroom after more than a decade of litigation."

"The Eastern District of New York has driven the case forward for years, reporting more than 30 guilty pleas and several trial convictions, along with sizable financial penalties from both corporations and individuals. In March 2023 a jury convicted a former 21st Century Fox executive and Full Play Group S.A., the Jinkis-owned sports-marketing company, on bribery and money-laundering cha"

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