Football: Franck Kita, the general manager of FC Nantes, indicted

2023-06-29 23:24:01

The deputy general manager of FC Nantes, Franck Kita, as well as “two people, including a players’ agent”, were indicted on Thursday and placed under judicial supervision, the Rennes prosecutor’s office announced in a press release.

These three people were indicted in particular on counts of “money laundering, aggravated money laundering, money laundering of tax evasion, exercise of the activity of a sports agent without a valid license”, according to the press release from prosecutor Philippe Astruc.

There is also added “the illegal exercise of the activity of sports agent by a national of a Member State or party to the agreement on the European economic area and complicity, illegal exercise of the activity of sports agent sporting activity by a national of a State which is not a member of the European Union or not a party to the agreement on the European economic area and complicity”. The facts relate in particular to transfers of players to FC Nantes between 2015 and 2018.

According to the local press, in addition to Franck Kita, the two people indicted are Bakari Sanogo and Joaquim Batica, agents of certain Nantes players.

Waldemar Kita recalled later

For his part, the owner of the club and father of Franck, Waldemar Kita, was also placed in police custody on Wednesday, like the other three people, but released on Wednesday at the end of the day. He “will be reconvened at a later date,” according to the statement. The French Football Federation (FFF) is a civil party, indicates the magistrate.

Initially launched by the Belgian federal prosecutor’s office, which then forwarded it to the French judicial authorities, the investigation notably highlighted the fact that “the leaders of FC Nantes would have had recourse on a recurring basis, at least since the year 2015 , the employment of unauthorized sports agents by drawing up sports agent contracts and player employment contracts under the guise of nominees, both in the context of player transfer negotiations and in the framework for negotiating player employment contracts, ”explains the press release.

On May 10, 2022, three days after Nantes’ coronation in the Coupe de France, three club officials had already been placed in police custody for several hours as part of an investigation into player transfers. According to several media, the investigators were then interested in commissions paid to Bakari Sanogo during several transfers.

Agent of Moussa Sissoko, Bakari Sanogo is an intermediary close to Waldemar Kita who has regularly called on his services in his recruitments.