Lausanne (AFP)

An extraordinary prosecutor has been appointed to examine the criminal complaints against the attorney general Michael Lauber and the president of Fifa Gianni Infantino, on bottom of suspicions of collusion, announced on Friday the Supervisory Authority of the Public Prosecutor's Office of the Confederation (AS- MPC).

Stefan Keller, President of the Supreme Court and President of the Administrative Court of the Canton of Obwalden, is responsible for "examining the criminal complaints transmitted to the AS-MPC by the Presidents of the Councils of the Federal Assembly", to the against MM. Lauber and Infantino "as well as others," said the supervisory authority of the Swiss prosecution in a statement.

Three criminal complaints were sent to the AS-MPC on June 11, directed against Mr. Lauber and against Mr. Infantino and others. In the meantime, the AS-MPC states that it has received "another criminal complaint relating to the same facts".

If the Extraordinary Prosecutor considers that the criminal complaints are unfounded, he is authorized to issue a "non-commencement" order.

If, on the other hand, he reaches the conclusion that "there are indications that Mr. Lauber is guilty of punishable acts", he will then file a request for the opening of criminal proceedings with the competent commissions of the National Council and of the Council of States, the statement said.

Mr. Lauber was interviewed on May 20 by a parliamentary committee with a view to the possible opening of a revocation procedure against him.

According to a report by AS-MPC, the 54-year-old senior magistrate, responsible for the procedures in connection with the corruption scandals at the International Football Federation (Fifa) since March 2015, "has breached several duties of office" by meeting informally and three times with Mr. Infantino in 2016 and 2017.

Until then, Mr. Lauber was sanctioned with an 8% reduction in his salary, a sanction he challenged before the Federal Administrative Court.

But the legal vagueness in which these meetings took place raises the question of a potential collusion between Fifa and the justice system.

In total, more than twenty procedures opened for five years in Switzerland have still not found an epilogue.

© 2020 AFP