Eleven former FC Parma players, among them Colombian soccer legend Faustino Asprilla, are being investigated for embezzlement and participating in the bankruptcy of the Italian soccer club.
The inquiry into 11 players who were at the club between 1992 and 2003 arose from evidence surrounding the main investigation into the fraudulent bankruptcy of the Parmalat food group, which also owned the club.
The investigated players reads like a “who’s who” of soccer stars from European competitions in the 90’s. Among those under scrutiny are Argentines Hernando Crespo and Juan Veron, Bulgarian Hristo Stoichkov, Frenchman Lilian Thuram, Swede Tomas Brolin and Italians Dino Baggio and Massimo Crippa.
28 people are being investigated in total, including heads of the Parmalat company.
According to the prosecution, money was taken out of Parmalat to finance the soccer club through false advertising contracts and false invoices for signed players.
Italian newspaper “Gazzetta dello Sport” reported that $5.6 million was diverted from the food company using Veron’s name and $4.4 million using that of Asprilla.
