Ex-judge sentenced in FIFA bribery case

Former Guatemalan judge Hector Trujillo, 64, has become the first person sentenced in the US over the FIFA bribery scandal.

Hector Trujillo

Former Guatemalan soccer federation official Hector Trujillo is headed to jail. (AAP)

A former Guatemalan judge and national soccer federation official has become the first person sentenced in a US probe into bribery surrounding world governing body FIFA.

Hector Trujillo, 64, was sent to jail for eight months by US District Judge Pamela Chen in New York on Wednesday.

Trujillo pleaded guilty to wire fraud and conspiracy in June, admitting he took kickbacks from a marketing company in exchange for helping securing media and marketing rights for World Cup qualifying matches.

At least 42 people and entities have been charged in a US probe into the payment of more than $US200 million ($A260 million) in bribes and kickbacks to soccer officials in exchange for marketing and broadcast rights ahead of the 2018 and 2022 World Cup tournaments.

Before being sentenced, Trujillo said through an interpreter he'd thought of the payments as reward for his hard work and as "common practice".

"I have to admit that my conscience failed me," he said.

"My own moral judgment failed me."

Trujillo, a former judge on the Constitutional Court of Guatemala, asked to be allowed to return to Guatemala without serving any prison time, saying he had already suffered enough in the nearly two years spent in the United States since his arrest, apart from his family.

Chen, however, said that would send the "wrong message" to others participating in what US prosecutors have called a pervasive culture of corruption in sport.

Chen also said Trujillo, along with other defendants, would be liable for $US415,000 in restitution but ordered more briefing from attorneys to decide how it would be paid.

Trujillo was arrested in December 2015 on a Disney cruise ship docked in Port Canaveral, Florida.


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Source: AAP



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