Key Takeaways
- Rui Pinto cleared of 241 cybercrime charges in Lisbon court due to double jeopardy rules
- Football Leaks whistleblower previously received suspended sentence in 2023 for similar offences
- Judges ruled that prosecutors subjected the defendant to ‘procedural violence’
Rui Pinto, the computer expert who exposed corruption in global football through the Football Leaks scandal, has walked free from a Lisbon court after judges threw out all charges against him in his second trial.
The 37-year-old Portuguese national faced accusations of illegally accessing 241 email accounts belonging to major sporting institutions, legal firms, and government departments. However, the court ruled on Wednesday that these charges were invalid because prosecutors had already pursued similar allegations in his previous trial.
Judges stated that bringing this case constituted double jeopardy, as Pinto had already stood trial in September 2023 for related cybercrimes. During those earlier proceedings, he received a four-year suspended prison term for hacking offences and attempted blackmail against a sports investment company.
“The prosecution violated the rights of the defendant,” the court declared, describing the legal action as “procedural violence” against the whistleblower.
Pinto first gained international attention in 2015 when he began publishing millions of confidential documents online. Between 2015 and 2018, he released 18.6 million files to the public and to a network of European newspapers, exposing hidden financial dealings in professional football.
The revelations disclosed the private salary details of stars like Lionel Messi and Neymar. They also highlighted a sexual assault lawsuit involving Cristiano Ronaldo, though an American judge later dismissed that case.
Despite his controversial methods, Pinto has become a protected witness in several European investigations. He has assisted authorities in France and other nations after spending over a year in custody following his 2019 arrest in Budapest.
Portuguese police detained him in Hungary after a lengthy extradition process. He subsequently agreed to help investigators access encrypted information in exchange for legal protection.
In addition to his football revelations, Pinto was responsible for the “Luanda Leaks” investigation in 2020. These documents examined the business empire of Isabel dos Santos, daughter of Angola’s former president José Eduardo dos Santos.
Last year, a French court handed him a six-month suspended sentence for hacking into the email systems of Paris Saint-Germain executives.