Four men in court over alleged football match fixing

http://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2013/dec/13/four-men-court-football-match-fixing-boateng-adelakun

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Four men have appeared in court charged in connection with a National Crime Agency inquiry into alleged football match fixing.

Footballers Michael Boateng and Hakeem Adelakun, both 22, and co-accused Chann Sankaran, 33, and Krishna Sanjey Ganeshan, 43, both originally from Singapore, are accused of taking part in a conspiracy to defraud bookmakers.

All four appeared at Birmingham crown court on Friday for a 10-minute preliminary hearing.

It is alleged that the four defendants conspired to influence the course of football matches. The conspiracy is alleged to have taken place in Manchester and elsewhere between 1 and 26 November this year.

Boateng, wearing a dark brown jacket and jeans, and Adelakun, who was in a light grey zip-up top, both appeared on unconditional bail and stared straight ahead throughout the proceedings.

Meanwhile, Sankaran, who appeared wearing a Manchester United-branded coat, and Ganeshan, wearing a striped formal shirt and a light grey overcoat, remain in custody.

The four will next appear back at the same court to enter their pleas on 7 March next year.

A provisional trial date has been set for 19 May 2014, with the case expected to take up to four weeks to hear.

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