Thursday, November 3, 2011

Spot-fixing Scandal: Tainted Pakistani Trio Sentenced Jail Terms Today in London Court

LONDON (Nov 03) – Former Pakistan captain Salman Butt and two of his teammates, pacers Muhammad Asif and Muhammad Amir, were today sentenced jail terms from 6 months to 30 months after being found guilty of spot-fixing, making them the first cricketers ever to be imprisoned for corruption.


Muhammad Asif with his lawyer Alexander Milne
Butt was sentenced to two and a half years, Asif was handed a one-year term, while the 19-year-old Amir was sentenced to six months of prison time by the Southwark Crown Court here.


Three of Pakistani cricketers, involved in the most serious sports’ corruption scandal in more than a decade, will know their fate today (Thursday, Nov. 03) as the court finished hearing yesterday.


Former Pakistani test captain Salman Butt and fast bowlers Muhammad Asif and Muhammad Amir were found guilty of spot fixing during a test match against England in 2010. Aisf and Amir bowled deliberate no-balls during the match on the stipulated timings set by so-called sports’ agent Mazhar Majeed, who pleaded guilty to the charges before the trial along with Muhammad Amir.


Salman Butt and Muhammad Asif have continuously been denying the allegations of spot-fixing, but both were found guilty on Tuesday of conspiracy to cheat and conspiracy to accept corrupt payments. Now they are facing possible 7-year jail term.


On Wednesday, Judge Jeremy Cooke spent the day in court listening the final explanatory statements from the lawyers of all three cricketers on behalf of players. Cooke will consider the case overnight before delivering his final verdict about sentences at London's Southwark Crown Court at 10 a.m. local time Thursday.
Continue reading what the players have said in their final mitigating statements ............. below:

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