Former Ukrainian Soccer Head Detained in Slovakia

Andriy Pavelko, the former president of the Ukrainian Football Association (UAF), who is suspected in Ukraine of large-scale financial fraud, has been detained in Slovakia, according to the Unian news agency.

The Office of the Prosecutor General of Ukraine reported the news. Although it did not officially name the detainee, Ukrainian media claim that it is indeed Pavelko.

According to Ukrainian investigators, he had been hiding from justice for years and was tracked down thanks to an international manhunt and cooperation with foreign security agencies.

The prosecutor's office alleges that Pavelko organized a scheme through which nearly 295m Ukrainian hryvnias ($6.6m) were siphoned off from the Ukrainian Football Association.

The money was allegedly siphoned off through fictitious contracts for the supply of seafood, premium tea, coffee and electrical equipment, which, according to the investigation, existed only on paper.

Ukraine has already requested his extradition from Slovakia and has also proposed that he be placed in temporary detention. Pavelko is also facing another investigation on suspicion of causing damages amounting to more than €9.3m ($10.6m) through offshore schemes between 2015 and 2016.

(unian, ukrmedia, est)