Turkey approves reduced penalties for match-fixing

Turkeys Parliament approved a sharp reduction in prison terms for match-fixing on Saturday, a move that will lead to lighter sentences for any suspects found guilty in a recent match-fixing scandal. The Parliament voted for the new reduced term of a maximum three years in prison, overriding a veto by President Abdullah Gul who argued that the amendments were giving the impression of a special arrangement to save suspects including Fenerbahce President Aziz Yildirim.League champion Fenerbahce was barred from the Champions League this season because of its involvement in the match-fixing scandal and it could be stripped of its domestic title and face relegation. Yildirim, who has denied any wrongdoing, faces charges of establishing a crime-ring, swindling, and match-fixing, the indictment said.Parliament first voted for the changes earlier this month, only eight months after it approved sentences of up to 12 years for anyone convicted of rigging games. The amendments were passed hours after prosecutors announced details of charges against 93 suspects in an indictment.Officials or players from seven other Turkish clubs were implicated in the scandal. Officials from Trabzonspor, which replaced Fenerbahce in the Champions League, were also among the charged. Former Fenerbahce forward Emmanuel Emenike of Nigeria, who was detained and then released without charge in July, is among 14 players charged over alleged match-fixing attempts. Emenike left Turkey following his release and signed with Spartak Moscow.It was not clear what punishment they face if convicted. Yildirim and 30 others, including former Giresunspor president Olgun Peker, remain in jail. The indictment described Peker and Yildirim as the ring leaders in a broad match-fixing scheme. The suspects will go on trial on Feb. 14.