Prosecutors are calling for Pogba’s brother and others to stand trial in the kidnapping case

Paris prosecutors have filed a request to open a criminal trial for Mathias Pogba and five other people as part of the investigation into the kidnapping and extortion of footballer Paul Pogba in 2022. (GUILLAUME SOUVANT)

French prosecutors on Wednesday summoned six of Paul Pogba’s associates, including his brother, to stand trial as part of an investigation into the alleged extortion and kidnapping of the French footballer, AFP learned from a source involved in the case.

According to the indictment obtained by AFP, five people close to former Manchester United and Juventus midfielder Pogba are suspected of “meticulous preparation” of the meeting in the suburbs of Paris on March 19, 2022.

The athlete, who was banned for four years for doping, was kidnapped and held hostage by two unidentified men who demanded he pay 13 million euros ($14 million), according to the Paris prosecutor’s office.

According to prosecutors, Pogba’s brother Mathias was not present at that meeting but is suspected of later putting pressure on his younger brother “with the same determination to get (Paul Pogba) to hand over the money.”

They all denied their guilt in the scandal, claiming they were “victims” of armed robbers and that they were attacked after Paul Pogba refused to pay.

Prosecutors summoned three childhood friends and two former acquaintances from the town where Pogba grew up in eastern Paris who were present that night to stand trial on charges of extortion, illegal detention and criminal conspiracy.

All five were previously charged with armed extortion and kidnapping in an organized crime group, as well as criminal conspiracy, before a request to reclassify the charges was filed on Wednesday.

The decision to refer the case for trial will now be made by the investigating judge.

On July 16, 2022, Juventus midfielder Paul Pogba filed a complaint with the Italian prosecutor’s office, claiming that he had become the target of a multi-million-dollar blackmail scheme.

– Family matter –

Paul Pogba, now 31, told investigators that his blackmailers wanted to discredit him by claiming he asked a “marabout,” or holy man, to cast a spell on then-Paris Saint-Germain and France star Kylian Mbappe, which Pogba denies.

French prosecutors opened an investigation on September 2 this year, which was handled jointly by the French police’s anti-gang units and the central crime unit.

At the end of September this year, his brother Mathias posted a series of videos on social media incriminating Paul Pogba and accusing him of “abandoning” the family.

The videos emerged after Mathias Pogba posted a previous video online on August 27 – in French, Italian, English and Spanish – promising “big revelations” about his brother Paul and the former’s subsequent detention by French authorities on September 14.

During the investigation, Mathias stated that he feared for his safety and that of his family, and then in January he told investigating judges that the other suspects had manipulated him and that he hoped to reconcile with his younger brother soon.

On Wednesday, prosecutors asked to put him on trial for extortion and participation in a criminal conspiracy.

“It cannot be seriously disputed that the relationship between Mathias Pogba and his brother Paul has been marked by tensions centered on the issue of money for several years,” prosecutors said.

“Several conversations intercepted (in summer 2022)… confirmed the clear intention of the interested party to obtain payment under threat,” they added.

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