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France international Paul Pogba’s brother Mathias and five other men were reportedly sentenced to prison terms of three and eight years on Thursday, December 19. The six men were convicted in a high-profile extortion case, targeting the footballer. Mathias will be able to serve his one-year sentence with an electronic bracelet, rather than being behind the bars. Not only this, but the court also fined the footballer’s brother 20,000 euros for participating in the extortion case of $13.5 million from Pogba in 2022. Not only this, but he was also involved in pressuring the footballer, his family as well as his business contacts to get money.
According to French Media, the other people involved in the case included Roushdane K (eight years) Boubacar C (four years, two suspended), Machikour K (four years, three suspended), Mamadou M (five years, 12 months suspended) and Adama C (five years). Notably, the footballer is without a club after the mutual termination of his contract with Juventus. He is likely to return to competitive play in March after his ban for consuming prohibited substances was reduced from four years to 18 months.
He is obviously in a state of shock: Mathias Pogba’s lawyer Mbeko Tabula
While a statement from Paul is still awaited, Mathias Pogba’s lawyer Mbeko Tabula said that the ruling was harsh on his client. Not only this, but he also added that he has made an appeal to the panel. His lawyer said, “He’s obviously in a state of shock. From the outset, he has maintained his innocence, saying that he was manipulated, that he was coerced, that he was pressured, that he would never have acted negatively towards his brother.”
The five other defendants were found guilty of extortion, kidnapping and detention as well as participation in a criminal association. Not only this, but Roushdane K., who is known as the mastermind of the case and the only person to appear in custody was sentenced to eight years’ imprisonment.
