The president of the Gabonese soccer federation, Pierre-Alain Mounguengui, has been indicted and placed under a committal order in Libreville for “failure to report crimes of pedophilia” in a case of alleged sexual assault of hundreds of children, his lawyer said Thursday.
The scandal, revealed by the British daily The Guardian in December 2021, broke when Patrick Assoumou Eyi, coach of the national under-17 team until 2017 and a well-known figure in Gabonese soccer circles under the nickname “Capello,” was jailed after being accused of hundreds of rapes and sexual assaults on children for whom he was responsible in his duties over several years.
Mr. Assoumou Eyi was, since 2017 and until his arrest, technical director of the soccer league of Estuaire, the province of the capital, Libreville.
Since his arrest, two club coaches, Orphée Mickala and Triphel Mabicka, have also been indicted on the same charges and jailed. All three men face up to 30 years in prison.
Fifa on Tuesday opened a disciplinary investigation into the three coaches accused of pedophilia as well as Mounguengui.
Gabon’s sports minister, Franck Nguema, said in December that Patrick Assoumou Eyi “allegedly abused hundreds of young boys in the course of his duties.