Trinidad’s National Security Minister Resigns Amid Corruption Allegations
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Tony Quinn/WireImage(PORT OF SPAIN, Trinidad) — Trinidad and Tobago’s Minister of National Security, Jack Warner, has resigned amid a cloud of allegations of corrupt dealings, and after being linked to an investigation by federal authorities in the United States.
Warner is a former vice president of soccer’s world governing body, FIFA, and he’s also the former president of CONCACAF — the governing body for soccer in North America, Central America and the Caribbean.
His decision to quit office as head of Trinidad and Tobago’s national security ministry was announced by that country’s Prime Minister, Kamla Persad-Bissessar, on Sunday night.
“I have today accepted the offer of resignation of the Minister of National Security, Mr. Jack Warner from the Cabinet of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago,” Persad-Bissessar said.
Attempts by ABC News to get a comment from Warner were unsuccessful, as calls to his cellphone went unanswered.
Warner’s resignation comes after months of continuous calls for him to either step down from his post as a minister, or for the prime minister to remove him from office. The most recent call for this came on Saturday from Prakash Ramadhar, who is also part of the government as the Minister of Minister of Legal Affairs.
In 2011, Warner resigned from the posts of FIFA vice president and CONCACAF president, following accusations of him being involved in a cash-for-votes scandal to get people to vote for then-Asian confederation head Mohamed bin Hammam in the FIFA presidential election.
On Friday, a CONCACAF ethics committee released a report accusing Warner and the governing body’s former general secretary — American Chuck Blazer — of enriching themselves through fraud while they were still part of CONCACAF.
Warner has continuously denied the stack of corruption allegations leveled against him. He has also been linked to an investigation by the FBI and the IRS. In March, the Reuters news agency reported that Warner’s son, Daryan Warner, has been serving as a cooperating witness in an investigation by the FBI and IRS into corruption in international soccer.
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