Croatia court rejects Modric perjury charges: report
A Zagreb court has rejected charges that Croatia captain and Real Madrid
star Luka Modric gave false testimony in a corruption trial, a Croatian
newspaper reported on Tuesday.
The decision, which can be appealed, came just a week after Modric was
crowned FIFA's best player of the year, after starring for both his club
and Croatia.
Croatian prosecutors charged Modric in March with committing perjury
during evidence he gave in the multi-million-euro corruption trial of
former Dinamo Zagreb boss Zdravko Mamic.
Modric, 33, testified in June last year over the details of his 2008
transfer from Dinamo to Premier League club Tottenham Hotspur.
He went on to join Real Madrid in 2012.
The offence carries a maximum penalty of up to five years in jail.
But, the Zagreb municipal court decided not to confirm the indictment --
a step required by Croatian law for a trial to open -- according to an
online report in the Vecernji List daily quoting the tribunal.
The report could not be immediately confirmed with the court.
Vecernji List said the court ruled that the indictment was "premature",
meaning it should have not been brought before rulings in the trial
against Mamic become final.
Mamic and three other defendants were found guilty of charges of abuse
of power and corruption that cost Dinamo, the current Croatian
champions, more than 15 million euros ($17.3 million), and the state 1.5
million euros.
Mamic, who is currently in hiding in neighbouring Bosnia, was sentenced in June to six and a half years in jail.
Prosecutors allege cash was embezzled through fictitious deals related to player transfers.
Liverppool defender Dejan Lovren, who also testified at the Mamic trial
about his 2010 transfer from Dinamo to French side Lyon, also faces
perjury charges.
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