In the indictment, Besseberg is accused of gross corruption in the period 2009 to 2018. This is in line with the charge brought against him by Økokrim during the investigation phase. The indictment includes bribes in the form of watches, hunting stays, hunting trophies, the use of prostitutes, as well as a leasing car he managed in Norway from 2011 to 2018, the press release states. It has a penalty in Norway of up to 10 years in prison. – Økokrim believes there is evidence that the defendant has received bribes continuously over a ten-year period. The seriousness is emphasized by the breach of trust this entails in light of his office as president of the IBU, says prosecutor and first state attorney Marianne Djupesland. news has gained access to the indictment. There, first attorney Djupseland lists a number of specific incidents which are the basis for the indictment. Prosecutors believe they have evidence that Besseberg received a watch in 2011, that he accepted the services of a prostitute in 2013, that he received another watch the following year, in addition to a hunting trip – to which he was transported by helicopter. The following year – during the World Cup in Holmenkollen, Besseberg is said to have received another watch, and the following year, according to the indictment, the biathlete top should have been awarded both a hunting trip and a hunting trophy. The same thing happened in 2018. The indictment also states that Besseberg had a standing agreement on hunting trips in the period 2009-2018, in addition to the fact that he was charged for a car in the period 2011-2018. The goods are said to have been received by both government officials within Russian biathlon, and for AFP/Infront, which had an agreement with the International Biathlon Federation on marketing and sponsorship rights for the IBU’s biathlon events. This took place at the same time as Besseberg himself was IBU president, the indictment states. Økokrim’s indictment While Besseberg was living in Vestfossen in Norway and in connection with his position as president of The International Biathlon Union (IBU) he demanded, accepted or received the following benefits in the period 2009 – 2018: Once in 2011, probably in connection with board meeting no. 100 of the IBU in March 2011 in Khanty Mansiysk in Russia, he received an Omega watch (colour copper/black) from an official in Russian biathlon. The value of the watch was approximately NOK 195,000. Once, probably in April 2013, and prior to the Winter Olympics in Sochi in Russia in 2014, he accepted an offer for a prostitute who was procured for him from an official in Russian biathlon. This probably happened in connection with a biathlon show race in Moscow. Sometime probably in 2013, and during a biathlon event in Russia, he received a Hublot watch from a Russian official in the Ugra region. The watch was worth about NOK 70,000. – In April 2013, in connection with a trip to Tyumen in Russia, he was ordered by Russian government officials to stay and go on a hunting and fishing trip at a hunting resort, where he was taken by helicopter. During the stay, moose, wild boar and deer were hunted. In 2014, at the end of the Biathlon World Cup in Holmenkollen in Norway, he received a Ulysses Nardin watch (colour: black with leather strap) from an official in Russian biathlon. The value of the watch was approximately NOK 78,000. In October 2015, an official in Tyumen in Russia asked him to go on a hunting trip to Tyumen. Besseberg also received a free trophy after killing a maral deer. In the period 2015 to 2018, Besseberg on several occasions accepted offers of prostitutes organized and offered to him by government officials connected to Russian biathlon. The association with a woman over several days and nights was arranged for him by such persons on at least two occasions, i.e. probably in March 2016 in Khanty-Mansiysk in Russia in connection with an IBU World Cup event, and in March 2018 in Tyumen in Russia in connection with the IBU World Cup finale. In March 2018, on the occasion of a stay in Tyumen in Russia, Besseberg was entrusted by Russian government officials with a hunting and fishing trip with accommodation and hospitality at a hunting resort in Russia. During the trip, Besseberg hunted maral deer and wild boar. In the period 2009 – 2018, Besseberg had a standing agreement to participate in hunting trips with the owner and general manager of the company APF Marketing Services GmbH (hereinafter “APF”), who was later a consultant for Infront Austria GmbH (hereinafter “Infront”) and a member of Infront’s advisory body. Hunting stays and hunting trophies were free for Besseberg and were paid for by the person concerned, his company or by Infront. The hunt took place regularly one to three times per year. years in Austria and/or the Czech Republic on exclusive hunting grounds. Usually, Besseberg also received trophies from the animals he felled. During this period, APF and later Infront had agreements with the IBU on marketing and sponsorship rights for IBU biathlon events or were in negotiations with the IBU on such agreements, which Besseberg approved/signed in his capacity as president of the IBU. In the period 2011 – 2018 at his place of residence in Norway, Besseberg privately disposed of a car of the type BMW X5 for which Infront covered the leasing costs. The value of this was approx. NOK 850,000. The benefits are considered inappropriate, and the violation is considered gross, especially because of the value, because there was a lack of transparency about the benefits he received, because by accepting the benefits, Besseberg broke the trust that accompanied his position in the IBU, because he acted contrary to the IBU guidelines and because by virtue of his role in the IBU he had the opportunity to influence decisions of importance for Russian biathlon and for APF/Infront. Monday’s news comes five years after Besseberg stepped down as president of the International Biathlon Union (IBU). It was a position he had held since 1992. Økokrim states that they have questioned a number of people and have obtained information from several countries. Considerable amounts of documents have been reviewed. They have also collaborated with the Austrian police under the auspices of Eurojust, and received assistance from authorities in the Czech Republic, Liechtenstein and Canada. – Never allowed himself to be bribed Besseberg himself denies criminal guilt. This is what his lawyer Christian B. Hjort writes in a message to NTB. – Besseberg maintains that he has never accepted a bribe or sought to influence the IBU’s anti-doping work to the benefit of anyone, the statement says. – He disputes criminal guilt after the indictment, Besseberg’s lawyer points out to news. – Can you say something about how he is doing? – He takes the matter very seriously. It has been an enormous burden on him and his family. He has lived for five years with very serious allegations against him. The accusations that he has influenced the anti-doping work and received large amounts of cash have not been included in the indictment. and he is happy about that. But the remaining allegations are also serious. He looks forward to explaining himself to the court about this. And he is confident that the facts of the case will show that there is no basis for the remaining points either, says lawyer Hjort and continues: – So he does not want to comment on the case any further until it has come up in court and there is a line he has held on all along. Although there have been many accusations against him that he believes are false. CHIEF: Anders Besseberg held office as biathlon president from 1992 to 2018. Here from the opening of the WC in Hochfilzen in 2017. Photo: BARBARA GINDL / AFP – This indictment means the end of a very long period of uncertainty and rumors in connection with what would happen with the former biathlon top. And is an even stronger indication that Besseberg received benefits far beyond the acceptable when he managed the IBU, says news’s sports commentator, Jan Petter Saltvedt. – This will be the most humiliating sentence any Norwegian sports leader has received if Besseberg is also found guilty in court, adds Saltvedt. It was Austrian police who started the investigation against Besseberg and the IBU’s former general secretary Nicole Resch in autumn 2017. Six months later, the IBU’s headquarters in Salzburg were searched, and soon after the Norwegian biathlon profile confirmed that there had also been a raid on his farm in Norway. He has always denied having done anything illegal. In 2021, a devastating report was presented by the International Biathlon Union’s (IBU) Independent Review Committee (ERC), in which they rattled off a long list of criticisms, evidence and accusations. The Biathlon integrity unit (BIU) has also finished its investigation, but the IBU has given the adjudication authority in such cases to CAS. In a press release, the IBU and the independent integrity unit (BIU) write that they note Økokrim’s decision. They also write that they have worked closely with Økokrim and that they will continue to give Økokrim full support in their work going forward.
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Besseberg indicted for serious corruption – news Sport – Sports news, results and broadcasting schedule
