KATHMANDU: The Special Court today has acquitted five former footballers accused of match-fixing in national and international games and their alleged nexus with bookies.

The members of Nepal national football team — Captain Sagar Thapa, vice-captain Sandip Rai, goalkeeper Ritesh Thapa, former national defender Bikash Singh Chhetri, and former national player and former coach of Three Star Club Anjan KC — were arrested on October 14, 2015.

An official at the Special Court, Murari Paudel told THT Online, "The bench of Special Court's Chairman Judge Baburam Regmi, Member Judges Pramod Kumar Shrestha Baidya and Narayan Prasad Pokharel has acquitted the five footballers of charges today." He said that Advocate Nirmala Sharma Subedi had supported the accused footballers in the hearing of the case that started from Wednesday.

The alleged footballers facing subversion charges for their alleged involvement in match-fixing of the international games that Nepal played were released on bail, on November 10, 2015.

Earlier, Asian football regulatory body had reportedly found the three footballers and one coach guilty of violating article 62 and 69 of the AFC Disciplinary Code in relation to various friendly international A team fixtures during the period 2008-2012.

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