PSG President Nasser Al-Khelaifi Under Investigation Over Detention and Torture of Lobbyist – News18

PSG unveiled Luis Enrique as the French capital city club’s new head coach on Wednesday following the departure of former boss Christophe Galtier.

Reports suggest that the President of the Qatari-owned Ligue 1 champions, Nasser Al-Khelaifi, turned up a bit late to the manager reveal as his home was searched as part of an investigation following claims of a 42-year-old Franco-Algerian man named Tayeb Benabderrahmane, who said that he was detained and tortured in Qatar back in January 2020.

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Benabderrahmane, who had moved to Qatar to work as a lobbyist, was held against his will for around six months and was questioned by the local police regarding the possession of documents that could prove to be incriminating against Al-Khelaifi.

Reports suggest that he was restricted to house arrest after six months of his detention and was permitted to leave the country just in November 2020, after signing a non-disclosure agreement.

DGSI, the French security agency’s intelligence suggests that Benabderrahmane had compromising images of Al-Khelaifi with a woman. The agency also added that conversations between the former FIFA secretary-general Al-Khelaifi and the Emir of Qatar, Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani, which was recorded in Benabderrahmane’s old phone could shed light on how the Middle Eastern nation secured the hosting right for the region’s first ever FIFA World Cup in the year 2022.

The DGI’s note also touched up on the allocation of TV rights of the World Cup to the competition, which was subjected to intense speculation of corruption.

Benabderrahmane is under investigation over the alleged blackmail of Al-Khelaifi.

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Benabderrahmane also claimed that former government minister Rachida Dati attempted to cover up the detention of the lobbyist while making a show of working to secure his release.

French investigators also raided the town hall of Paris’s seventh district, run by Dati, in relation to the allegations, while sources close to the 57-year-old Dati claim that Benabderrahmane is a blackmailer.