Hacker Rui Pinto Receives Suspended Sentence for Exposing European Football Secrets
In a recent development, Rui Pinto, the hacker responsible for the largest information leak in the history of sports, has been handed a 4-year suspended prison sentence by a Lisbon court. Pinto’s leak uncovered some of the darkest secrets within European football, sparking a massive scandal.
The court found Pinto guilty on multiple counts related to illegitimate access to IT systems, correspondence violations, and attempted extortion. Pinto admitted to using illegal means to obtain documents but argued that he acted as a whistleblower in the public interest.
However, presiding judge Margarida Alves emphasized that the freedom to inform does not justify privacy violations and pointed out Pinto’s motive of seeking financial gain from his actions.
Despite the sentence, Pinto’s lawyer highlighted that the ruling acknowledges the public service aspect of the leaks. Pinto, often hailed as a modern-day Robin Hood figure, expressed his goal of exposing corruption and unethical practices in the world of football.
Working under the pseudonym John from 2015 to 2018, Pinto shared a vast amount of confidential documents and data, totaling 18.6 million files and 1.9 terabytes, with various media outlets including Der Spiegel. These leaks revealed how agents, intermediaries, and clubs, including Manchester City, abused regulations to maximize personal financial gain.
The revelations led to widespread investigations into tax evasion, with high-profile individuals like Cristiano Ronaldo being implicated. As a result, Ronaldo had to pay over €18 million ($20 million) to Spanish tax authorities. Furthermore, Manchester City faced numerous breaches of financial regulations charges from the Premier League.
Pinto, now 34 years old, was arrested in Budapest in 2019 and subsequently extradited to face trial in Portugal. Currently, Pinto faces 89 hacking charges and an additional charge of attempted extortion, carrying a potential prison term of two to ten years in Portugal.
During the trial, Pinto argued for protective status as a whistleblower, but he admitted to hacking and expressed remorse for attempting to blackmail Nelio Lucas, the face of investment fund Doyen Sports. Pinto claimed that he was outraged by the corruption he uncovered and stated that his actions were not motivated by money, although he acknowledged the potential framing of his conduct as extortion.
The trial also revealed that Pinto’s alleged victims included Sporting Lisbon, one of Portugal’s top football clubs, and the Portuguese Football Federation.
Furthermore, the Portuguese Public Ministry recently opened a new case against Pinto, consisting of 377 separate charges related to unlawful access, violation of correspondence, aggravated violation of correspondence, and computer damage. The investigation is ongoing, and it is expected to continue for several months.
In a statement made by Pinto’s lawyers, they claimed that the indictment is part of the prosecution’s strategy to prolong Pinto’s legal proceedings.
It is worth mentioning that Pinto also claimed responsibility for the release of the Luanda Leaks, a massive trove of documents shedding light on the business empire built by Isabel dos Santos, the daughter of the late Angolan dictator Jose dos Santos, who became the wealthiest woman in Africa.
Despite the suspended sentence, the impact of Pinto’s leaks on European football remains significant, exposing deep-rooted corruption and prompting calls for reforms within the industry. As the investigations continue, the football world is anxiously awaiting further revelations and the potential consequences they may bring.
