Brother of French footballer Paul Pogba sentenced to a year in prison for extortion

A Paris court sentenced the French midfielder’s brother on Thursday Paul Pogba to three years in prison, suspended for two years after his conviction in a high-profile extortion case. Mathias PogbaThe older brother of the former Manchester United player will be able to serve his one-year sentence at home while wearing an electronic device rather than behind bars. The court also fined Paul Pogba’s brother 20,000 euros for his role in attempting to extort 13 million euros ($13.5 million) from Pogba in 2022, and for pressuring the player, his family and his business contacts to obtain payment.

Mathias Pogba’s lawyer Mbeko Tabula said the decision was “extremely harsh”, adding that he plans to appeal.

“He’s clearly in a state of shock,” he said of his client.

“From the very beginning, he maintained his innocence, saying that he was manipulated, that he was coerced, that he was pressured, that he would never act negatively towards his brother.”

The trial adds to the professional woes of Paul Pogba, whose career has been anything but smooth since France won the 2018 World Cup when he scored against Croatia in the final.

The 31-year-old has suffered from repeated injuries and patchy form, leading to his departure from Manchester United in 2022. He returned for a second spell at Juventus, where problems continued to plague him.

He is serving a doping ban, which was reduced to 18 months on appeal, and will be eligible to play again in March next year, but Juventus terminated his contract last month.

An extortion case involving six people linked to Paul Pogba shocked the French football world as the alleged perpetrators included three childhood friends and Pogba’s own brother.

Five other defendants were found guilty of extortion, arrest and detention, and participation in a criminal gang and were sentenced to prison terms of up to eight years, as well as fines ranging from 20,000 to 40,000 euros.

The court also said that Paul Pogba suffered economic damage amounting to €197,000 and psychological damage amounting to €50,000.

Only the kidnapping charge was not retained, as the prosecutor suggested.

Rushdain K., considered the organizer of this case, was sentenced to eight years in prison.

Mathias was the one who brought the case to light, posting a video on social media in August 2022 promising revelations about his younger brother that were “likely to be explosive.”

In a subsequent video, Mathias accused Paul Pogba of casting an evil spell on his national teammate. Kylian Mbappe through a healer.

Pogba told French investigators that in March 2022 he was “duped by childhood friends” in the Paris suburb where he and Mathias grew up.

He accused them of grabbing him before he was held at gunpoint by two hooded men with machine guns who demanded €13 million for “services rendered” and accused him of failing to help them financially.

Pogba said he only paid them €100,000 at the time.

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