The brother of Paul Pogba, the former Manchester United midfielder, has been sentenced to 3 years in prison, suspended for 2 years after being found guilty of plotting to blackmail the French football player.
Mathias Pogba, who was also fined 20,000 euros (£16,500), will avoid jail and instead serve a year of wearing an electronic bracelet.
Five other men were convicted of extortion and other crimes and received sentences of four to eight years in a Paris court on Thursday.
Paul Pogba, 31, said he was “tricked by childhood friends” who held him at gunpoint in 2022 and demanded 13 million euros (£10.8 million). He said he paid them 100,000 euros (£82,600).
Mathias Pogba’s lawyer Mbeko Tabula told RMC Sport that the sentence was “extremely harsh” and said “I think we will appeal”.
The remaining five defendants received the following sentences: Roushdane K 8 years, Boubacar C 4 years, 2 suspended sentences, Adama C 5 years, Mamadou M 5 years, 12 months suspended, and Machikour K 4 years, 3 suspended sentences.
Last year, Paul Pogba told Al Jazeera that he had considering retiring from football because of the blackmail plot.
“When you have money you have to be careful,” he said. “Money changes people. It can break up families. It can cause war.”
Former professional footballer Mathias Pogba played for clubs including Partick Thistle, Wrexham, Crewe Alexandra and Crawley Town. His last club was Belfort in France, leaving them in 2022.
