President of Irish Olympic Council arrested in Brazil

Civil police arrested Patrick Joseph Hickey, the president of the Olympic Council of Ireland who is also a member of the International Olympic Committee (IOC). He is implicated in an international illegal Rio 2016 ticket sales scheme. Police have also served a search and seizure warrant.

A former judo player, Hickey is a member of the Rio 2016 Coordination Commission responsible for overseeing the event planning and organization.

The investigation into illegal ticket sales for Rio 2016 had already led to the arrest on August 5 of THG executive Kevin Mallon and its employee Bárbara Carnieri, who were caught in flagrante delicto. THG is a UK corporate sport hospitality and ticket sales company.

Earlier this week, four other THG executives were ordered under arrest—David Patrick Gilmore, Marcus Paul Bruce Evans, Maarten Van Os, and Martin Studd. Brazil's Federal Police and Interpol have been notified of the warrants because the suspects are not in Brazil.

Translated by Mayra Borges