RIO DE JANEIRO Acting president of the Olympic Council of Ireland, William O’Brien, said the body would “defend ourselves to the hilt” after Brazilian police arrested president Pat Hickey in a dawn raid on his hotel on Wednesday.
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OCI President Pat Hickey has been arrested in Rio de Janeiro this morning.
They allege PRO10 funnelled tickets to another company, THG Sports, whose director was arrested earlier this week in Brazil.
Hickey gave an interview to RTE radio on Friday in which he denied any connection to THG, denied kno-wing Mallon and insisted that none of the tickets in question passed through the OCI office.
Hickey did not respond to calls for comment.
An online video showed the Dubliner being led away in a white bathrobe.
The head of the Olympic Council of Ireland (OCI), 71, who is also an executive board member of the International Olympic Committee (IOC), stepped down temporarily from all his Olympic roles last night.
The council says he will step aside temporarily as President of the OCI until the matter is fully resolved. “We have full confidence in the system”. As I’ve said before he’s innocent until proven guilty.
Asked this week if organizers would consider dropping prices to make tickets more accessible to locals and to drive last-minute sales, Mario Andrada, a spokesman for the Rio organizing committee, said revenue from tickets was critical to funding the event. “I understand that person has accepted consular assistance and our Consul General is engaging with him”. He joined the ruling executive board four years ago.
Another potential stumbling block is that Ireland must have a corresponding law for whatever offence Brazilian authorities may bring charges for.
Police said the arrest was related to that of fellow Irishman Kevin James Mallon on the day of the Olympic opening ceremony.
PRO10, the OCI’s authorised ticket reseller for the games, said it had legitimate customers for its tickets.
Mr Hickey is being supported by Irish diplomats in Brazil.
Briefly after police arrested the Olympic official at his hotel, he was hospitalized because he was “feeling sick”. At that time, authorities estimated the touting ring was making 1 million reais ($310,000) per match.
Mr Hickey was taken into custody yesterday after a dawn raid at the Rio hotel where International Olympic Committee members were staying.
Police believe tickets from Ireland’s official allocation were transferred to an unauthorized vendor, British company THG, who would set high fees and disguise the transaction as a hospitality package.
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The reports of the alleged arrest come after Sports Minister Shane Ross travelled to Rio to talk to Hickey about allegations surrounding the touting of Olympic Games tickets.
