Rui Pinto lawyers plan appeal against withdrawal of witness protection

Rui Pinto's lawyers announced plans on Friday to appeal administratively against a decision ending the Football Leaks founder's witness protection in Portugal. Lusa, in a report published by Observador, said the programme was due to end on 10 October. His legal team also asked the authorities to reconsider and maintain his protection.

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The commission's order, reported by Lusa, cited a lack of commitment by Pinto to complying with the programme and a police reassessment that classified the threat level as low. The decision followed meetings in June and July. Those stated grounds contrast with the danger described by Pinto and his lawyers.

The lawyers said they had asked the justice ministry to disclose the risk reassessment and give Pinto a hearing. They reported receiving no reply by the time of their statement. They also said he had been assaulted in Lisbon in April.

Separately, BBC Sport reported that Pinto said on X on Friday that he would have to move to an undisclosed location for an indefinite period. The 37-year-old cited death threats and fears of an assassination attempt. Those accounts describe his assessment of the danger; they do not establish that an attack is imminent.

Pinto joined the protection programme in 2020 after agreeing to co-operate with authorities and provide material obtained through Football Leaks, according to the BBC. He had supplied documents to German magazine Der Spiegel in 2018, including emails and financial records concerning Manchester City. The resulting reporting helped trigger the Premier League's investigation into the club's finances.

The BBC also outlined Pinto's own legal history: a Portuguese conviction for offences including unlawful data access and attempted extortion brought a suspended four-year sentence. Earlier this year, he was acquitted in another trial involving 241 counts of illegally accessing email accounts at Portuguese sports organisations. His lawyers argue that proceedings arising from the leaks remain ongoing, including the Manchester City case, and that withdrawing protection increases the risks he faces.