Egyptian Team Robbed…Or Not…
Filed under: 2009 Confederations Cup
Egypt team management reported that several players recently lost their wallets during their 1-0 victory over Italy, losing a total of about $2500. However, new details suggest the players “may have fallen foul of light-fingered female consorts attending their impromptu victory party”…
Story via TheTimes
“A war of words erupted between the Egyptian football team and authorities in South Africa Sunday over the circumstances in which members of the Egyptian team were robbed, following their Confederations Cup win over Italy.
On Friday, members of the Egyptian announced they had been returned to their hotel rooms after their historic 1-0 win over Italy at Ellis Park in Johannesburg to find thieves had made off with 2,400 dollars of their cash.
The incident made international headlines, amid persistent concerns over high crime rates in South Africa in the run-up to the World Cup next year.
But two South African Sunday newspapers gave a different version of events. The Sunday Independent and City Press both quoted police sources as alleging that the players had fallen foul of light-fingered female consorts at an impromptu victory party.
“We have reason to believe that they brought the women onto the premises and were celebrating with them before they were robbed of their money,” the Independent quoted a senior policeman as saying.
The newspapers also questioned why the robbery had only been reported to police several hours after the incident.
City Press said sources in the police, at the hotel and the World Cup local organising committee (LOC) had also said there was no sign of forced entry into the players’ rooms, nor any sign they had been burgled.
LOC spokesman Rich Mkhondo told the Independent the matter was becoming “murky.”
The chairman of the Egyptian football federation reacted angrily to the allegations that the players had been “caught with their pants down,” as the Independent’s headline put it.
“I think that they (newspaper’s sources) said that to divert attention from the main issue, which is security, by creating a scandal for the Egyptian team,” Samir Zahir told the German Press Agency dpa.”
does that mean hotels in south africa allow hookers in the rooms??? that easy???? well…good reputation for south africa published from that newspaper…fifa liaisons with egyptian team knew about it and didnt report??….that newspaper shud be closed…or else..they will face hell in courts…egyptian team are all playing as one team…they pray togather…live togather..!!
am dissapointed to know about low security measures in south africa..instead of finding the thiefs…they create a false story and spread it
it’s really offensive wwhat they say, now Brazil team is robbed too, what is the reaosn they will provide this time? .. shame on south africa team, I huess egyptians should not leave this case pass swiftly
That’s really wow the creation of such a story means that we, in the third world, still can’t have the courage to admit that we r wrong or something inconvenient happened or got out of our control in stead to cover the mistake we have the courage to distroy the reputation of a whole team that represents a country which was always an aim for offense I know why our players plyed bad in front of the USA team not coz they had girls in their rooms but coz they were down due to what they read in papers after beahving Nobely in the issue of robery and my dear fellows u ‘ll suffer more when u come back coz unfortunatly the narrowminded majority beleive this dirty gossip
GOD help u be with u in this case bless u but DO NOT LEAVE UR RIGHT revenge LEGALLY
I see that south Africa made this problem that Egyptian team got hookers.
so that no one can say that south Africa is a bad country to hold the world cup.
they made it a team problem ((Egypt))not a country problem ((south Africa))
Brazil Team Robbed: Thieves Raided Hotel Rooms During Italy Match – Report
The Brazilians are the latest team to fall victim to crime during the Confederations Cup tournament…
22 Jun 2009 09:40:58
2009 FIFA Confederations Cup: Lucio Italy-Brazil (PA)
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2009 FIFA Confederations Cup: Lucio Italy-Brazil (PA)
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Brazil’s Confederations Cup triumph over Italy was soured as thieves got into their hotel rooms during the fixture and stole a number of items, including cash belonging to Selecao players and staff, according to La Repubblica.
According to reports, defender Kleber claimed some items were missing from his hotel room in Pretoria while physiotherapist Odmir Carmo apparently had a jacket and money stolen from his room.
Brazilian FA (CBF) spokesman Rodrigo Paiva has confirmed the reports and he has revealed an investigation is underway.
“Kleber believes he has had money stolen and other players are looking at the situation,” Paiva told reporters.
“The hotel has told us that they are investigating what happened.”
It’s not the first time thieves have struck teams taking part in the Confederations Cup. On Thursday night, the Egypt squad allegedly had large amounts of money stolen from their hotel rooms.
Salvatore Landolina, Goal.com
I fully agree with the opinion that says :the main issue is to divert the attention from the ” high crime rates in South Africa in the run-up to the World Cup next year” “by creating a scandal for the Egyptian team”
AS SIMPLE AS THAT!
An Egyptian citizen living outside Egypt
(Non-football fan!)
well…… after Brazilian team got robbed do the South African press still insist on the prostitude story?????!!!! idon’t think sooooooo…
the next news headlines … brazil 0-5 hookers ???
THAT’s bullsht they said on the eyptian team of course !
real shame on SA , making honor scandals to hide their OWN SECURITY SCANDALS !!!!
SA is well known for it’s famous lack of security , people there must not walk into streets with watches on their wrists as the robbers in SA could cut peoples arms to steal the watches !!!!
there was no evedince about hockers story with egypian players .
no photos no videos so hockers story is fake and above all that brazilian players,ragby players had been robbered also …is it cause of hockers also ?
South African Police has said today: “the footage also indicated that no women had accompanied players into their rooms”
the full article is from “The Time”
http://www.thetimes.co.za/News/Article.aspx?id=1025867
No one had been identified as responsible for the alleged theft of money from the Egyptian national soccer team’s hotel rooms, police said today.
Briefing journalists in Pretoria on the Confederations Cup security operations, deputy national police commissioner Andre Pruis said: “No suspect has been identified and the hotel staff members who had access to the rooms have been completely cleared through fingerprint and polygraph tests.”
He said the case had been forwarded to the director of public prosecutions for a decision.
“We have not closed the case. We have referred it to the director of public prosecutions for them to take a decision and not us.”
He said hotel staff had twice passed polygraph tests and this indicated to police they had not tampered with the Egyptians’ rooms.
“We don’t have a suspect.”
He said footage obtained from the hotel indicated that no person other than the Egyptian team, two children of the coaching staff and hotel staff members had access to the rooms of the hotel in Illovo, Johannesburg.
He said the footage also indicated that no women had accompanied players into their rooms.
The deputy commissioner said no major security breach occurred during the Confederations Cup.
“There had been 39 cases reported of which 29 of them were theft relating to cellphones, five were robberies, one case of reckless driving and two cases of corruption in which it has been alleged that police officials were asking foreign currency from the visitors,” he said.
The corruption case was being investigated and in the other cases suspects had appeared in court, he said.
South Africa has accused Egypt of their presence with the prostitutes, rather than solve the problem of theft against the Egyptian team and South Africa, a country full of poor and prostitutes, banditry, and I see that the Egyptian team is a very strong team won the world champion lost the last moment from Brazil and I think that’s America’s lucky Without a moment he stepped up to the final