BOGOTA: Colombia’s sports ministry has asked the football federation to investigate itself over a World Cup tickets scam.

Earlier this month 17 senior executives including FIFA Council member Ramon Jesurun were fined $4.6m for a ticketing rip-off by the country’s business regulator, the Superintendencia de Industria y Comercio.

Also fined by the regulator was TicketYa, the Colombian federation’s agency partner which had been set up to sell home tickets for Colombia’s games in the qualifiers for the 2018 World Cup in Russia.

Fined along with federation president Jesurun was vice-president Alvaro Gonzalez. Luis Bedoya, the former head of the federation who resigned and pleaded guilty to corruption charges in the FIFA corruption scandal, was also fined.

A Sports Ministry statement said: “An investigation is necessary to determine if transgressions existed. The suspension or removal of board members should take place if regulations are found to have been breached.”

FIFA’s ethics committee has yet to comment.

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