CIFA-Webb cash connection on FBI radar
Jeffrey Webb, former FIFA vice president
(CNS): US authorities involved in the FIFA corruption scandal may also be looking into the Cayman Islands Football Association (CIFA) and the movement and disappearance of cash, at a time when Jeffrey Webb was president and Canover Watson was treasurer, that came from the Zürich-based football HQ to the local association. CNS has learned that at least one formal complaint has been made from the Cayman Islands to the FBI about the missing CIFA cash, which was given to the association by FIFA for its grassroots football programme GOAL but which appears to have helped fund Webb’s luxury home in the US.
During the trial of Canover Watson over the hospital CarePay contract it was revealed that he and Webb were also intermingling CIFA cash with their own business accounts. Question about where around $250,000 that had been given to the local sports association has gone remains officially unanswered.
Although FIFA itself is supposed to be investigating the missing money and the Cayman Islands Anti-Corruption Commission has indicated that it has received complaints, no one has provided any explanations about the unusual cash movements, where transfers were made in and out of the CIFA accounts that then went through various business accounts connected directly and indirectly to Webb and Watson and other local businesses.
It is not clear how far the FBI has delved into the CIFA financing irregularities or what the outcome will be, but since the money that is missing from the CIFA coffers is from FIFA, it is likely to tie in with the US law enforcement’s ongoing wider football probe.
Webb was due to be sentenced last week for the kickbacks and bribes he received while president of both CONCACAF and CIFA, and vice president of FIFA. However, according to US court records, the sentencing hearing was postponed at the request of Webb’s lawyers until November.
CNS has been unable to confirm if this is because he is now in discussions with the FBI over the CIFA cash. Despite pleading guilty to the specific charges brought by US Department of Justice, Webb has made no public admissions the missing FIFA Goal money and has not been charged by either the local or US authorities in relation to it.
Revelations during the CarePay trial suggested that the money went towards paying for his luxury home in Loganville near Atlanta, Georgia, where he currently remains under house arrest on a $10 million bond.
Canover Watson, Webb’s close friend and business partner, is currently serving a jail sentence for his part in the CarePay corruption case. But although Webb has been charged in the same case, he has not yet answered those charges. However, there was incriminating evidence in emails and other correspondence, as well as documents and bank records, which showed that Webb was behind the questionable CIFA cash movements.
The local authorities here say they still plan to try Webb in connection with CarePay and, depending on the outcome of the sentencing in the US, the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions will be seeking to extradite him back to his native Cayman to answer those charges.
Category: Crime
Why are there still three directors in place, who were part of the old now discredited CIFA board, which appears, “at the least”, to have turned a “blind eye” to dubious financial transactions involving Webb and Watson. XXXXXX The situation with CIFA is as bad as Seth Blatta at FIFA – there is no oversight regulation by a Government body – or are we looking at a massive cover up to protect people at a much higher level?
These bums are just low life #$@!% and need to be in a nice jail cell with Big Bubba!
and still nothing about CIMA’s review of Fidelity’s operations…they tried to distance themselves from Western Union by halting operations soon after they were implicated in the AIS and FIFA transactions….very suspicious.
I think you will find Fidelity were at the forefront of uncovering Webb’s shinanigans and reporting it to the authorities through their SARs report.
if you want something done call the FBI or IRS. Once they let the dogs out those dogs don’t return home without their catch. and this should be lesson the three remaining at CIFA to RUN now or spill the beans as the foot steps can be heard acoming
Only one gets to spill the beans. Whoever is left gets to pay the piper.
It is good to know that the USDOJ, FBI and IRS are involved in these investigations. They have my support. There the better ones for the job! At least we have a chance of weeding out the criminals and their co-conspirators.
White Collar crime is a huge problem in Cayman.
I think that they (i.e the U.S. Authorities) are doing an extraordinary job.
The media and authorities seem to be superficially preoccupied with this single cash movement from an isolated year, rather than the decades of intermingling and thefts that remain buried under the deliberately obscured surface. Do they really expect anyone to believe that the $250,000 missing from CIFA in one calendar year is the extent of the problem?
And as snail-paced as the FBI has been to put two and two together, a year and a half after the original DOJ indictment, the Cayman Islands have shockingly done nothing to recover these funds or initiate/broaden an investigation! As the world looks on, we aren’t exactly setting a high bar as it pertains to crime fighting and/or recovery of our kids’ missing money!
On the contrary, as if to underscore the widespread acceptance of this glorious culture of mismanagement, we routinely turn a blind eye to politicians that can miraculously find a million dollars at Christmas and hurl the money into the air for the unemployable, or create a fictional ledger surplus to distribute bonuses to their voter base, or arbitrarily give millions to churches going into an election, or solar panels. What have we done to show the world that we will stand up to this corruption? We can’t pretend it’s not widespread and engrained. It’s time to look at our own house and purge all of this behavior – especially now, in the lead up to May 2017 elections – and of course, we should try to locate the missing $250k and put a lien on it, before the FBI does.
Doing nothing is what the Cayman Island does.
The $250K went into the house, remember. Whilst the FBI already have a lien on Webb’s US assets, they have agreed a forfeiture deal with him, and he is going to get to spend the balance of the $10m he put for bond as he sees fit. So we should be asking DOJ for some of the $6.7m he has agreed to forfeit as victim compensation (problem being that the DOJ is not going to see CIFA as a victim but as a co conspirator!) and b) taking our own criminal asset seizure action. However, who has ever heard of the Cayman authorities doing anything material in that regard – hell, they didn’t even go after the $1.5m Bouchard stashed in her dead fathers bank account. As always in Cayman, the law is there, the willingness or competence to enforce it less so.
Once again we have outsiders trying to impose their rules and laws on our traditional heritage and way of life.
Arrrr, there is certainly a long unsavory heritage of organized wrecking, pillaging, and coverups going back several generations. Lloyds of London have records of these going back to mid-1700’s and Lawson Wood’s, “Shipwrecks of the Cayman Islands” chronicles this theme with Captain reports going back to Pirate days. Over 300 known shipwrecks in our waters, many of questionable demise, and almost all with immediate negotiated salvage by eager looting residents. This industry of survival came long before Barclays Bank opened in 1953, and many of Cayman’s most prominent surnames built their family legacies on marine salvage and well-orchestrated insurance scams long after the “pirate” era purportedly ended.
“marine salvage”
While you are summarizing how Cayman and some Caymanians got their wealth, please do not forget how England pillaged Africa.
Or how the Indians dissapeared in the USA
And they all built mansions on 7 mile beach right? Wrong, it all went back to the mother country.
That IS your heritage and way of life. Cool cool man.
Traditional way of Life. You surely mean Corrupt way of Live I hope ? 2 sets of rule in Cayman. The Untouchables and us. I hope they bring to light Who is corrupted while they pretend to be succesful and honest. Plenty of them you would be surprised ! One rule : Justice for All and no smoke screen.
It sickens me every single time when I read this kind of stuff, to think that he and many others had no shame to help themselves to funds which were supposed to be allocated to providing opportunities for our youth. Imagine that CIFA is now in such a position where they have to put on fund-raisers and beg people for support in order for those kids and coaches who put in huge efforts to have some opportunity to represent their country at some tournaments………and yet, we have the nerve to frown upon other countries in the region
Looks like I better cancel my shopping trip to the US.
Amazon here I come.
That’s okay brother. We’ll send someone around to pick you up.
Please keep them too. We don’t want them back.
(Sigh)
As I constantly tell all non-White, non-Anglo-American leaders and individuals in positions of power – leave the money ting alone!
Follow the examples of the those leading this charge and; illegally invade sovereign, brown-peopled, non-Christian countries, commit crimes against humanity that may or may not include the slaughter of 1,000,000,000 (non-white, non-Christian) people, assassinate their leaders, take their oil / natural resources, set up yourself as Chairman of newly established oil company in illegally invaded country … then ride off in the minted sunset all the way to the bank!
Cha man! Is like they cyaaaan’ hear or sumtin’!?
Anyway, whereas rooting out football corruption is useful, it still pales in comparison to far greater issues facing the world today.
We are still waiting for some righteous and well-intentioned western endorsed and financed international organisation to address the aforementioned crimes against humanity that were committed in full view of the world.
*If one does come along, could someone please tap the head on his shoulder and let him know that thousands of little children the world over are being sexually molested at this very moment by a man in a robe that has been officially despatched by another sinister global operation that, alongside many other functions, is the most prolific of pedophile networks on the planet?
Cheers,
– Whodatis
Another pathetic contribution, as usual. According to your theory literally any crime can be countered with “so and so murdered more people than me”.
Not really.
Webb is a crook, as is Watson – they have both been convicted of their wrongdoings.
I simply believe there are far greater things and bigger criminals for the world to be focusing on than international football corruption.
– Who
Soooo… let them go cuz they aren’t at the top of YOUR list?
No. Catch the Great Whites that are swimming and preying in this shallow pool.
Why are we glorifying the capture of guppies and ignoring the most dangerous of creatures?
– Who
Well who is going to catch a great white?
Isn’t rather that you are the opposite side of the same bigoted coin you accuse others of. By your standards any accusation against someone who is “non-White, non-Anglo-American” is the product of bias and/or de minimis in relation to the offences committed by white, Anglo American people of power, but of course that is to give a blanket excuse to anyone who is non white , non Anglo American. You are basically as racist as the people you love to hate. Or you are a white, Anglo American troll.
Umm…no. Far too much insinuation in your post there buddy.
No need for the Latin either.
I’m simply highlighting the fact that the usual suspects continue to enjoy untouchable status in this world.
Personally it is difficult to take global football corruption seriously while we ignore actual atrocities for no apparent justified reason.
As for the racial stuff..you’ve obviously put more thought into that aspect than I. I simply state the obvious from a pragmatic perspective.
Clearly your little toes-ies have been touched on. Such is life.
– Who
Think bigger my friend. Think bigger. You are proud of your intelligence, which is….okay, but you are blinded by it. Step back.
You are being disingenuous and you are wrong.
We are not sure exactly what Webb and Watson will ultimately be found guilty of, only what they have been found guilty of so far. Who knows what else is to come and what other wrongdoings, to use your term, they will be found guilty of in the future?
What really gets you about Webb is that he is one of your beloved own, Cayman’s anointed world beater and he let you down, publicly and with much fanfare. It’s not the white man’s fault, it’s not the FCO’s fault, it’s truly home grown and it burns that you can’t blame the usual suspects.
Deflect to Blair all you want, Webb and his crimes is not going away any time soon.
Oh dear.
The whites are quite ‘wex dis eeweenin’!
Not my fault that truth hurts buddy.
– Who
😀
5:42, All blood runs red. Get over the skin color thing and step back to look at the fact its humanity in all shape sizes and colors you describing. I think your closet racist and a hate monger.
…and I think you have the typical global perspective of a typical westerner.
As you were tho. Makes life easier after all.
….and this line of thinking and argument sums up why this country is in such a mess. No wait, what am I saying, there are other which also don’t uphold laws, morals and ethics so why should we….?.Ironically enough, this line of thinking only seems to help those who have their hand in the cookie jar so to speak, but not those who are actually having a bone of dignity in them.
When your brown skinned, non Christian people rule the world (which will be never) and get to define it, you can extract compensation from us White Devils for all our “wrongs”.
Until then, you get to remain cry baby victims as long as you choose.
You have all the tools to be a wise person W’dat but you’ll need to stop hating your white blood first 🙂
Not only are you twisted but you are painfully miseducated as well.
Never you say? OK bub.
Think you may have missed an “again” there somewhere.
BTW, thanks for exposing the single greatest fear of western society hence the catalyst for its historical inhumane attacks on others.
Lastly, since you wanna go there – whites are actually a global minority and with globalisation comes the inevitable.
I suggest you cherish little Susie’s recessive blue eyes because your grandbaby isn’t likely to sport them.
Just sayin…
That’s the thing who, I don’t care if my grand baby’s eyes are brown.
You on the other hand haven’t made peace with your blue eyed genes. It’s the only way for your salvation.
I see. This from the person who earlier said;
“When YOUR brown skinned, non Christian people rule the world (which will be never) and get to define it, you can extract compensation from US White Devils for all OUR “wrongs”.”
Yet you claim you don’t care if your grand baby’s eyes are brown. Miss me with the politically correct and considered responses buddy. The quick-tongued remark of a man always exposes his heart.
That’s right, I don’t care. I’m trolling your racism, not claiming mine.
Now about that self hate of yours……
My god, that is a HUGE chip on your shoulder. Would you like some dip to go along with that chip? Give it a rest, man.
All he did was give our country a worse picture than what we already have, all for greed.
CaymanKind.
The net is closing in. Hopefully the FBI can do the job for us. The local authorities do not look willing or able to deal with this very complex case. To those still on the board of CIFA with history of supporting J Webb and C Watson it is time to take a good look at your options.
Look at the names of those involved and you will see that NOTHING is going to happen because of either friendships or political connections.
That’s what Noriega from Panama thought.
Correct 2:39 am. Look at Eldon Rankin. Still sitting on the Central Planning Authority, deciding how Cayman develops its land. Mind you, I guess he has time on his hands now that he’s done fronting Jeff and Canover’s companies.
Speaking of Eldon rankin Lee Ramoon was also the chairman of the central tenders committee when the AIS contract was awarded. Now show me the cgange in CIFA.
You just opened Pandora’s box. Owning Economy Builders Eldon Rankin got the contract which never went to tender, to build the second pitch at Newlands. To date I have been unable to locate it. Perhaps the Campbells and Bruce Flake can advise. For those interested go visit but take snorkel, mask and flippers to find it. He was paid about $350,000 for this magnificent effort, by FIFA.
I suppose the appointment of Phillip Rankin as auditor could not be construed as a conflict. That is clearly just a Cayman coincidence. As a passing thought should the auditor know where the pitch is?
It’s not that complex. The asset roadmap was issued in DOJ indictment over a year and a half ago. The heavy lifting ended quite a long time ago.
Jeff Webb is the Cayman Teflon Don
Teflon? Hardly, since he’s facing several years in a US jail.
But is he?
House arrest!!! He should be in jail. WTH?
Pants pooping time in cayman!
LOL, the plot thickens.
Well now. Maybe something will get done. By outsiders of course.