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Football match-fixing trial opens
The trial of 31 people accused of fixing professional football matches in Belgium got underway on Monday in Brussels, despite the absence of the alleged mastermind of the operation, who remains at large. The search for the prime suspect, Chinese businessman Zehyun Ye, has been going on for nine years, but he has continually eluded capture. No confirmed sightings had been reported until recently, when photos surfaced, revealing that Ye is indeed alive and still on the run.
In what is called Belgium’s biggest football fixing scandal, Ye has been accused of shelling out €1.6 million to fix up to 18 games in 2004 and 2005. Among the other 31 standing trial are Gilbert Bodart, the one-time manager of La Louviere, and three former players from Lierse.