“Act of state terrorism”! Lawyers erupt after the Man City whistleblower is stripped of protection
The aftershocks of Manchester City's guilty verdict are reaching far beyond the Etihad. The man whose leaks started it all has now fired back with the most explosive language yet seen in the saga.
Details: The lawyers of Rui Pinto have issued a furious statement calling the decision to strip the Football Leaks whistleblower of his witness protection an act of state terrorism that does not respect the rule of law. Pinto was notified on Wednesday that the special security programme he has been part of since August 2020 will end on October 10, forcing him to leave his protected, confidential residence. His legal team, Francisco Teixeira da Mota, Luísa Teixeira da Mota, William Bourdon and Vincent Brengarth, stressed that Pinto was never heard before the decision, as the law requires. They also revealed that the 37 year old was physically assaulted in Lisbon last April and suffers constant threats that are not merely theoretical, arguing he will now be more vulnerable than at any time since 2020.
The lawyers did not mince their words, reminding everyone that Pinto's revelations were used by judicial, fiscal and sporting authorities across Europe, starting with France, and that many of the cases flowing from them are still live, citing the Premier League independent commission's decision against Manchester City delivered just days ago. The states that benefited from his actions, they argue, cannot simply turn their backs on the man who took the risks to bring these facts to light. The decision itself, taken after PSP reassessment meetings in June and July, was justified by the police's conclusion that the threat level is now low, along with claims about Pinto's lack of commitment to the programme, a reasoning his defence dismisses outright. The appeal route is already in motion: his lawyers will file an administrative appeal with suspensive effect and have formally asked the Ministry of Justice to reconsider, disclose the risk reassessment elements, hear their client and guarantee the continuity of his protection. So far, they say, there has been no answer at all.
It's worth noting that Pinto's entry into witness protection in 2020 was itself the product of his cooperation with Portuguese justice, which gave authorities access to millions of files obtained before his arrest in Budapest in 2019. He remains a deeply controversial figure: in 2025 he was convicted of attempted extortion, though acquitted of most other charges in his second trial, and his documents, shared with Der Spiegel, ignited the investigations that culminated in City's landmark guilty verdict.
Reminder: Dangerous twist after Man City verdict! Rui Pinto loses protected-witness status
Miguel Solomons
Dailysports's expert
