President of the Olympic Council of Asia Ahmed Al Fahad Al Sabah denied any relation with $ one-million bribe, saying in a statement issued on Saturday that he strongly denies committing any violations.
In a sign of continued problems in FIFA, the ethics committee said in a statement on Friday that it had suspended Richard Lai, who is also president of the Guam Football Association (GFA), at the request of its chief investigator Cornely Borbely.
Lai, 55, pleaded guilty on Thursday to wire fraud conspiracy charges before US District Judge Pamela Chen in Brooklyn, according to US prosecutors who said he had taken close to $1m in bribes. He was also suspended on Friday by the Asian Football Confederation (AFC), where he is a member of the marketing committee.
Lai was not among several dozen officials and sports marketing agencies, mainly from Latin America, who were indicted in the United States in 2015, the biggest crisis in FIFA's history.
According to a statement issued by Olympic Council of Asia, Sheikh Ahmed Al Sabah realizes the media speculations over the accusations against Lai of receiving bribes, as the American authorities conduct investigations currently with him over the accusations.
Sheikh Ahmed was very surprised by these allegations and strongly denies any irregularities, and will vigorously defend his integrity and reputation and any organization he represents in any relevant legal review," the statement said.
It added that that he is one of the most prominent supporters for the arrival of German Thomas Bach to the presidency of the International Olympic Committee in 2014, and the ascent of Bahraini Sheikh Salman bin Ibrahim al-Khalifa to the presidency of the AFC in 2013, replacing Qatar's Mohammed bin Hammam, who has been suspended for life.