Webb banned for life from football

| 09/09/2016 | 79 Comments
Cayman News Service

Jeff Webb, banned from football for life

(CNS): FIFA has banned Cayman’s Jeff Webb from football for life and will be issuing a fine in excess of US$1 million to the former president of both CIFA and CONCACAF. In a statement Friday from the scandal-rocked global football body, the adjudicatory chamber of its ethics committee announced the immediate life-long ban of Webb for all official football activities and said he was guilty of numerous violations of FIFA’s rules and code of ethics. Webb has already admitted a catalogue of criminal offences relating to fraud during his time as a football boss and is still under house arrest in the US awaiting sentencing in November.

The FIFA Ethics Committee began its own investigation into Webb’s offences last May following his high-profile arrest in Zürich with a number of other officials. Headed by Dr Cornel Borbély, the investigatory chamber of the Ethics Committee found that Webb had breached article 13, relating to the general rules of conduct and code of ethics at FIFA, article 15, which, deals with loyalty; article 18, covering the duty of disclosure, cooperation and reporting; article 19, dealing with conflicts of interest; and article 21, relating to bribery and corruption.

“In consequence, Mr Webb has been banned for life from all football related activities, administrative, sports or any other on a national and international level and fined CHF 1,000,000,” FIFA stated.

The latest blow to the discredited former local football hero is one of a number of problems that 51-year-old Webb still faces. Aside from waiting to hear his fate in the United States after pleading guilty to corruption and conspiracy charges there, he is also wanted in Cayman in connection to his involvement in the CarePay hospital corruption case, for which his business partner, Canover Watson, is currently serving a seven-year sentence.

It is understood that once Webb has been sentenced in the US, the local authorities here will begin seeking his extradition to the Cayman Islands.

Meanwhile, significant questions remain unanswered locally about how CIFA funds were impacted by Webb’s confirmed offending as well as deals and financial transactions with the local association’s cash, involving him and Watson, the former CIFA treasurer, and other CIFA officials that were described by auditors as “financial irregularities”.

Both FIFA and the RCIPS Anti-Corruption Unit were said to be investigating CIFA but no questions raised during Watson’s trial or by local auditors have been addressed.

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Comments (79)

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  1. Anonymous says:

    Hang on a minute

    Where did Webb get the money that he is now expected to pay FIFA?

    Before FIFA impose a single cent of a fine, those entities from which Webb stole should first be repaid. If there is money missing from CIFA for example…. CIFA cannot afford to subsidise FIFA’s grandiose gesture

    • Diogenes says:

      Where do you think CIFA got the money that Webb stole from them? CIFA obtained it from FIFA for supporting the game, then Webb took it. Oh, and of course the other scams like HSA.

  2. Sharkey says:

    He Webb should not only be banned from being involved football organization , and also banned from watching any game , and be banned from being involved in any monetary organization too.
    This is how I feel about someone like Webb who has destroyed the future of our kids , and shamefully disgraced me as Caymanian .

  3. Benny Zitto says:

    Jeff Webb was only following in the footsteps of the great European tradition and colonial mentors have done to make it. What jeff forgot is what many Caymanian fail to understand just because you have a little booklet in your hand saying you are a European means you have the same rights as a Europeans. He also forgot his dark complexion will always keep you below suspicion. which means be honest and keep your nose clean As for you poster 807pm if only Caymanians are stealing and are Scum as you say why don’t you and your supporters leave this thievery and scummy little place.

    • Anonymous says:

      At what point did I say Europeans don’t steal ? Or Americans or Africans or any other nation ? If you read my original post before jumping straight into your blame culture racist ramblings then you would have seen I mentioned sepp blatter. But nope , easier to say he is only being punished because of the color of his skin ? It’s when I read ridiculous excuse making , blaming the world for your problems BS like this that I feel sorry for all the decent caymanians ,of which there are many. To answer your pathetic little stock answer of ‘ if you don’t like I , leave ‘ why should I leave ? I’m here legally , contribute to society , pump thousands into the economy every year spend the majority of the money I earn here locally. I have every right to be here and every right to comment negatively on any subject I wish . Whether you like it or not .

    • Anonymous says:

      All postings have missed one big point. Webb and his henchmen were voted in years ago by the clubs. The fraud was uncovered a year ago not just by the auditors who missed it in the first place with two other auditors equally complicit but by Chris Johnson who reported on it extensively . What has Ramoon done since? NOTHING.
      What have the clubs done ? NOTHING.

      • Diogenes says:

        The clubs and Ramoon are also victims of the colonial culture. Its not their fault, or the local Caymanian auditors, but its someones fault, and it cannot possibly be theirs. So there.

  4. Anonymous says:

    Jeff has his problems with the US and Cayman justice systems to deal with but a FIFA ban and fine? What a joke. This guy boarded a well-established bandwagon of corruption rivaled in sports only by the International Olympic Committee. If FIFA is concerned about ethics they should close shop and let an entirely new organization run global football. You can’t fix or cleanup something that’s been this dirty for this long.

    • Anonymous says:

      I think pretty much all sports. Time to stop giving people a free pass just because they can run/swim fast

  5. Anonymous says:

    56 posts at time of commenting but if it was about two people of the same sex harmlessly wanting to commit themselves to marriage we would have 200 by now.Any comments on Jeff Webb and his corruption, Mr Eden, or is it ok because all that money he illegally siphoned off has provided a wonderful home for his female wife in Atlanta?

    • Anonymous says:

      That would be his sacred vessel you’re referring to.

    • Diogenes says:

      Intrigued at your mentioning his female wife. Does he have a non female one as well?

    • Nostradamus says:

      That comment of yours is to sneakily promote your agenda. It’s of no value or relevance here. Comments is an indication of the importance of a subject. The Webb drama has been going on for a long time and we quite rightly got tired of it. Go back and look at the initial stories and you will see the amount of comments back then. Learn, Gather, Before, Talking.

  6. Sucka Free Cayman says:

    Dearest 3:07pm you need to pray for Crooked Jeff and his notoriously corrupt buddies because without him providing the needed distraction from those despicable Business friends of yours back home where would the world be???? After all Who is Jeff Webb anyway?? How about persons like Nigel Cowie a fellow countryman of yours who has help the DPRK go nuclear. Yes why don’t we look at those terrible Qataris whose billions and logos advertise and flow in the capital of the birth place of football and their FA teams jerseys everyday. As far as blood of thousands you must be talking about those UK mining companies in the Congo like Glencore whose exploitation of their natural resources while rape and genocide continue from their various money ventures yes and the copper bullets that end of as ammunition which their weapons manufactures and suppliers have no reservations selling to those slave trade sheiks and their harems or despot regimes in the Middle East. Yes you self righteous Twatt!!!! Like i said Who is Jeff anyway???

    • Anonymous says:

      I’m sorry , I must be mistaken ? I thought this article was about a thieving caymanian not Nigel cowie or glencore ? You sum up everything wrong with Cayman . ‘ don’t speak badly of us …there are plenty worse… Blah blah blah . , deflection, deflection……’ The guys scum , he got caught , deserves everything coming to him and more . That doesn’t make me self righteous ..just makes me right. Twat.

  7. Anonymous says:

    This man is a Caymanian and son of the soil. He made a mistake that is all. The US has no business with him and he should be allowed to come home and have his trial here.

  8. Anonymous says:

    I must say if you do a crime you must pay for it. No one should be above the law. I was so proud of a Caymanian holding such a high level position on the global market that you wouldn’t understand. I’m very disappointed and and feel so ashamed that one of our own Caymanian made it so far on the global market in sports and totally failed. Is it that Caymanians shoulders never make it this far in life? I wish every Caymanian success in life. Our greatest enemies are our own. Crabs in bucket. People come to Cayman and take advantage of us and our Islands because they witness how Caymanians are so envious, divided and not supportive of each other. I think this behavior is due to being ruled and loyal to the superior the mother land, Great Britain, Caymanian See’s these people and others as superiors and it will always be that way. Colonialism mentally. Americans and Europeans citizens go abroad and commit crimes, whatever and their countries are behind them making sure they are okay. What about foreigners that comes here commit crimes here and flee? What about the British lady that stole from the Pines? The Canadian Police here that stole the PTA funds from the school and then ran back to Canada? All of you that’s bashing our own Caymanians instead of feeling disappointed and ashamed or let down, are just a bunch of Caymanian Crabs. You should all be crying out loud on this same news media, radio, TV, Facebook, Politicians, Governor and whoever it should be saying Justice is not just for a Caymanian, but for all of us. Extradite those that have committed crimes in our dearly beloved Islands to face Justice. If you commit a crime you must do the time don’t matter where you are from. I’m not a fan of Jeff Webb but fan for justice.

  9. Anonymous says:

    Well, with the damage he is done this ban and small fine is the least that can be handed to Mr. Webb. Anyway this simply means that officially he is not able to be involved in football matters, however, many say he is still running CIFA behind the scenes, the old establishment still in place with Bruce Blake, Peter Campbell, Martha Godet, etc The new president, Lee Ramoon has not, at least publicly made any attend to bring the changes need it to push the local game forward. We need some local bans urgently.

  10. Anonymous says:

    Why does CIG Legal Dept. have to wait until a U.S. sentencing in order to begin an Extradiction Application Process? Why not be proactive and start the process early?

    The CIG Legal Dept. is damn backward. That is why I pride the U.S. Law Enforcement System, though not perfect. However, they take the initiative to start the process even if it means that they have seal the record (of such information) until it is required for proper service.

    Well, now that the FBI/ATF has positioned itself closer to the Cayman Islands by cutting the Miami-Cayman commute time and locating to Jamaica-based U.S. Embassy is definitely plus. Perhaps, now, confirming the whereabouts of the criminals and investigating them should be a lot easier to do.

    The FBI/ATF assistance -i.e. training and case investigations – is truly appreciated.

    • Diogenes says:

      Because they cannot extradite him until the US has determined how long he is going to spend in prison there first? Or do you think he should serve the time here?

      • Anonymous says:

        Again, Cayman should start the Extradition Process, and amend the content later, where necessary.

        There is no doubt that US will incarcerate him! So, Local officials should interrogate him in the US, then move for a Cayman Islands trial in absentia.

        Remember: Jeff is being Extradicted for the CarePay Corruption Case, that has varying CIFA/FIFA links, according to banks records and (Shell) Company activities.

  11. Al Catraz says:

    Well that’ll teach him.

  12. Anonymous says:

    What does that mean? Banned for life from football? He can’t watch football, kick a football or think of football?

  13. Anonymous says:

    Isn’t ‘FIFA Ethics Committee’ a contradiction in terms?

  14. Anonymous says:

    Why did they wait so long after he pleaded guilty?

    • Anonymous says:

      Maybe…..for continued cooperation as part of his plea and/or to not hamper continued investigations on others FIFA/CIFA connects. Just maybe?

      • George Nowak says:

        reminds me of getting punished in high school – my teacher would say…. ” you are expelled for one week ” … so for a week I’d hang out on the beach and go surfing while my friends were in school ???? go figure ???

  15. Anonymous says:

    As I read the headline, I thought to myself “no sh1t, best thing FIFA has done in a long time.”

  16. Spiyda says:

    Not long enough.

  17. Cow Cod says:

    Funny how you see the guys driving around in their big fancy cars, big houses and rolexes yet not one has offered an apology to the children. Sickening!!!

  18. Anonymous says:

    No point wasting more Caymanian money by bringing him back to Cayman. Let him do a full term in the USA, then think about locking him up here. And throw away the key.

    • Anonymous says:

      I’d imagine he will have to serve his sentence in a U.S. penitentiary , as the charges relate to laundering funds through wire transfers via the U.S. banking system , on their soil. Any local lawyers wish to comment here to verify? Extradition may be a possibility in the longer term. However, that has not worked so well for Caymans other citizen/s serving time in the U.S. judicial system. You commit crime in the U.S., you now get to spend time in their correctional system. They don’t care if you were once high rolling & stepping in Cayman,Switzerland or Brazil. He is also most likely considered a U.S. ‘ resident alien’ via Mrs.W & the children , the home in Georgia.

    • Anonymous says:

      The world over, would be stunned if the USDOJ made the decision to extradite him without time served.

      “Don’t it a Uncle Sam. Don’t do it”

  19. Anonymous says:

    Too bad this corruption was world wide ….we may never know how far this corruption spread.

    We must lay the blame on the countries and businesses around the world that was so happy to pay the bribes.

    Jeff was a huge disappointment and he is joined by many.

  20. Anonymous says:

    A house like Jeffs in Georgia the average Caymanian owns in Cayman. The only thing is it costs very little there compared to the cost in Cayman.

  21. Anonymous says:

    Not baf. You steal 6 million and you get 1 million fine. You keep your houses and you dont ho to jail.
    Nice job. And good promotion for the money hiding Cayman Islands.

  22. Anonymous says:

    FIFA has an ethics committee? I’m utterly amazed!!

  23. Harauguer says:

    Jeff is not going to serve any time, we to smart for that, we signing like a cage full of canaries!

  24. I MISS MARIUS says:

    As for anything more to come out of the Carepay fiasco, please do not look for that. All people involved in that scandal is now protected by the “brotherhood”. You would think that the person or people who signed the cheque would be held responsible in some way, but according to the report from the investigating teem “no one was responsible”.

  25. Anonymous says:

    Please stop referring to this fraud as a “local football hero”.

  26. Anonymous says:

    I am glad to see the comments so far don’t have the ‘ pray for Jeffrey ‘ and the ‘ he is a good god fearing caymanian led down the wrong path by the devil ‘ remarks that the earlier reporting of what this loathsome individual had. If anyone is in any doubt what this scumbag was involved in ( along with Blatter , Warner and the rest of the lowlifes at FIFA ) then take a look at the 2022 world cup . Which was awarded to ummmm…Qatar. Not England the birthplace of football , or the USA …the fastest growing market for football , or any one of a number of football loving nations that have the stadiums and infrastructure to host the worlds second biggest sporting event be they south American , European or even African . Nope …Qatar. A tiny place with a ruling class of extreme wealth but no infrastructure to support such a huge event . One can only wonder at the size of the envelopes passed under tables at the meetings with the sheiks and Fifa officials.
    But why should you care ? Well , for very good reason . Qatar needs to build to be able to host the world cup on a massive scale . To enable this they import labor. Mostly from India , Nepal but also from Philippines and the surrounding areas. Sound familiar? It’s where the comparisons to Cayman end… The migrant workers in most cases have their passports taken from them , live in horrible conditions , are payed next to nothing and have the wages deducted for ‘Living costs’ .
    THOUSANDS have died due to terrible conditions , heat and a lack of health and safety on construction sites. It is quite literally a modern day slave trade.
    And who do we have to thank for such a woefully underprepared and under qualified dot in the middle east hosting this great spectacle ? Good ole Jeffrey and the gang! Meanwhile this greedy pig of a man is swanning around his georgia mansion throwing lavish parties for his wife…who I have been told we also have to feel sorry for as she had to offer up her jewelry for surety. As far as I’m concerned they have the blood of thousands on their hands and please think about this before daring to suggest we ‘ pray for him ‘ .

  27. Anonymous says:

    He might just get hit with the rico…

    • Anonymous says:

      CNS, you “Like” button is acting up, again! I’m trying to “Like” comments and it is prompting that ” you already liked this comment”, yet the tally is stuck at “0”.

      Could you kindly look into this malfunctioning macro button? Thx.

      CNS: Yes, we’re fixing it, hopefully tomorrow. We need feedback on how it’s working, but give us 24-48 hours.

  28. Anonymous says:

    a caymanian involved in fraud and money laundering?????…..never!

    • cayman cares says:

      GREED can be found in EVERY Nationality

    • Anonymous says:

      Yep he is up there with the Brits, Canadians, Newzealanders, Aussies Americans, Jamaicans and all the other dishonest rats that we have had to contend with over the years. Crime is not discriminating.

    • Anonymous says:

      Yes, just like the rest of the non Caymanian criminals that pop up daily feasting at the table. Good for Jeff only regret that he got caught and became the fall guy but my advise to him would be if you going down take everyone aboard the ship with you; from the top to the bottom.

    • Anonymous says:

      Never knew what money laundering was until we started letting
      the launderers in, we were taught by the best

      • Anonymous says:

        …and, there are countless fraudsters residing on the coastal terrain of the Islands, whether on a sandy beach or an iron shore. Their multi-million homes & condos are prominent features/architectural spectacles. Oh! And, we can’t dismiss the canal waterways ?? ?

    • Anonymous says:

      Just what is happening locally. What has Ramoon done and why is CIFA not recovering monies from the thieves. I recall Chris Johnson did an article almost a year ago on the corruption at the new football pitch. Cayman wake up.

    • CSG says:

      I am highly insulted by your statement because you make it seem as if all Caymanians are corrupt and are involved in fraud and money laundering. There are a lot of honest, hard working Caymanians so please keep your nasty comments to yourself.

  29. Tut Tut says:

    Any news on the other locals who were involved in this money laundering ring?

    Waiting patiently, clean house!!!!

  30. Anonymous says:

    From first class down to no class.

  31. Anonymous says:

    He should be banned from life for life and locked up forever. It’s not just the damage he’s done to the sport worldwide and regional but also the harm he’s done to the reputation of these islands.

    • Anonymous says:

      Jeff has done far less damage to Cayman’s reputation as a native than many non Caymanians have going back to the 1970s to date. One promoter of the financial services on YouTube is now in Federal Prison doing time not to mention the so called Investment fugitives that swindled millions from pensioners. Thanks that the USDOJ is hot on their heels and many others in the pipelines that will make Jeff look like a choir boy. I am not advocating that what Jeff did was not bad but just saying…. Know your facts and don’t let me give names and crimes of criminals that smeared Cayman as far back as the 70s that have not a drop of DNA to terra firma of q this rock.

      • Anonymous says:

        Yup. Cayman’s tax haven benefits, unregulated industries and small population made it a mill for money launders.

  32. Anonymous says:

    Greed does funny things to a person. Skews their morality and all of their integrity. Both of which Webb has none left of.
    Could have done such good things too… Waste. Shameful. I can just imagine him swanning around his mansion in Georgia being all sad and sh!t.

    • Anonymous says:

      Unfortunately anyone with good moral and ethical standards would never have been promoted to his level within FIFA. We have to understand that he didn’t get to that level based on his skills and character but instead of what he was prepared to do to keep scheme going.

      Therefore he would never have done much of anything good in favor of the players, fans and the game itself.

      It was all about greed amongst the mafia family at the expense of all others.

    • Anonymous says:

      Hater, get a life! I bet when he was the hotness on the block you were one of the groupie hanging around to see what you could get from the deal.

    • Anonymous says:

      Morals and integrity were lacking in the first place along with all of his untouchable politically connected friends.

      • Anonymous says:

        CNS, how could I have “Already Voted” when the macro button isn’t even tallying when you press them? These buttons seemed to be stuck at “0”.

        S.O.S

        CNS: Yes, we’re still having a few issues with the buttons. Hopefully it will be sorted soon.

  33. Veritas says:

    Can CNS advise when his U.S sentencing hearing will occur?. He seems to be having a grand old time out on bail with plenty of time to hide his remaining assets.

    CNS: As it says in the first paragraph, November. When more specific date is announced, we will publish that.

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