Ex-Honduran leader caught in FIFA scandal dies in U.S.
A former president of Honduras who was convicted in the FIFA soccer bribery scandal died in america on Saturday.
Rafael Callejas governed Honduras from 1990 to 1994, but he was better known for soliciting thousands of dollars in bribes in the wide-ranging FIFA soccer scandal over lucrative broadcast rights.
Callejas, 76, pleaded guilty in 2016 and was reportedly being held at a prison in Atlanta when he died.
Current Honduran President Juan Orlando Hernandez confirmed Callejas' death, adding on his Twitter account that "we enormously regret" the loss of the former leader. Hernandez said Callejas is survived by his wife, children and grandchildren.
No cause of death was presented with, but Callejas had reportedly suffered from leukemia.
After leaving office, Callejas was once a member of FIFA's tv set and marketing committee.
He pleaded guilty to racketeering conspiracy and wire fraud conspiracy in a fresh York federal court. He said he distributed a substantial part of his bribes to delegates of the Honduran soccer federation so he could remain its president, a posture he held from 2002 to last August.
Callejas said he abused his powerful position in the soccer world to award contracts to Media World, a Miami-based sports marketing company that paid bribes through U.S. bank accounts to the foreign bank accounts of Callejas and a co-conspirator.
