Man City whistleblower set to lose protection amid fears for life
Portuguese computer hacker who released documents which led to the Premier League investigation into Manchester City set to lose his witness protection despite fears for his life.
Football Leaks founder Rui Pinto, a Portuguese computer hacker, is set to lose his witness protection status amid fears for his life. Pinto released confidential documents, including emails and financial records, which led to Manchester City's investigation by the Premier League. In 2018, he shared the documents with German magazine Der Spiegel, which used them for investigations.
City was found guilty of breaches of financial fair play rules between 2009-10 and 2017-18, a verdict they have appealed. Pinto entered Portugal's witness protection program in 2020 after agreeing to cooperate with authorities, but the program was terminated on October 10, putting his life at risk. He claims there have been multiple death threats and the serious risk of an assassination attempt, leaving him with no choice but to relocate.
Pinto, who has been described as a whistleblower, was convicted in Portugal of data access offenses and given a four-year suspended sentence. He has also accused Fifa president Gianni Infantino of being a "cancer on football" who should have no place in the future of the game.
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