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Could Inter be demoted?[/FONT]
Wednesday 20 June, 2007
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Lawyers warn that Inter could be demoted to Serie B if the financial scandal is proved in the sporting courts!
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The club has been named as part of an investigation into creative accounting in Serie A and a member of the Covisoc – the association that performs financial checks on Italian clubs – accused them of fiddling their 2005-06 accounts with artificially inflated player values, known as plusvalenze.
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At first it seemed as if this would only result in a fine for the Nerazzurri, but specialist lawyer Mattia Grassani has a very different view.
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“Financial fraud is a very serious crime, second only in the sporting justice system to sporting fraud,” he noted.
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“The sanctions for directors go from a simple fine to up to five year suspensions with the possibility of a lifetime ban.
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“For clubs the punishment can be either a fine, points penalties or even demotion. In the rules there is also the possibility of stripping the Scudetto, but that is up to the Federation President to decide.”
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After Juventus were relegated to Serie B for their part in the Calciopoli scandal with Milan, Fiorentina, Lazio and Reggina all given points penalties, will the justice system be equally as harsh on Inter?
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“First of all we must ascertain whether Inter or indeed any other side has falsified financial documents, thanks to which they entered a competition that they would otherwise not have been qualified for,” explained former Investigative team member Mario Stagliano.
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“In that case, we could begin inflicting the penalties set down by the rules.”
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Although Inter are the newest additions to this investigation, Milan, Reggina and Sampdoria have already been named as part of the inquest.
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