Austrian football "is being shaken by a betting scandal," according to the SID. Defender Dominique Taboga, who plays for Austrian Bundesliga club SV Grödig, "filed a complaint with police that he was blackmailed to fix a game and revealed the news to his club on Monday evening." During a fictitious money delivery on Tuesday, police "arrested three individuals." Former Austrian national team player Sanel Kuljic, 36, "is also under suspicion." The police "are currently investigating." Grödig Sport Dir Christian Haas said, "It came out of nowhere for us. We were all shocked. Mr. Taboga consulted us yesterday, then told us that he's being blackmailed by the betting mafia over match-fixing. He also went to the police on Monday." Haas also said that the club "has released the player for the time being" (SID, 11/12). KRONE reported according to the internal police report, Taboga, 31, told police that "he is being blackmailed by Kuljic and Czech native Sulim D." He "was supposed to fix matches through his behavior and continuously pay the blackmailers -- otherwise it would have 'serious consequences' for him and his family." His career also would have a "sudden end." He also said that he "was forced to admit to a previous match-fixing incident on tape under the threat of a firearm." He has paid €87,000 ($117,000) to the blackmailers so far (KRONE, 11/12).
