The Portuguese computer hacker who released documents which helped trigger the Premier League investigation into Manchester City will remain in witness protection after authorities in the country suspended the decision to end it.
Football Leaks founder Rui Pinto had been scheduled to leave the protection programme on Saturday, a ruling he previously said had put him in a “life-threatening situation”.
Pinto, 37, disclosed a tranche of confidential football documents, including emails and financial records relating to the English Premier League side.
In 2018, he shared documents with German magazine Der Spiegel, which used them for investigations into City’s finances and alleged breaches of financial fair play rules.
City were recently found guilty of all charges relating to breaches of the Premier League’s financial regulations between the 2009-10 and 2017-18 seasons. They have appealed against the decision.
Pinto became part of Portugal’s witness protection programme in 2020 after agreeing to co-operate with authorities and provide information obtained through the Football Leaks operation.
However, in a statement on Friday,, external Portugal’s Ministry of Justice said a decision to remove Pinto from witness protection had been reversed for the time being, with the body responsible for it – the special security programmes commission – having not adequately “notified” Pinto of grounds for its termination or given him the opportunity to challenge the decision.
Pinto will now be given 10 days to assess a risk assessment conducted by the special security programmes commission that indicates a low threat to his safety.
He posted on X, external thanking Portugal’s Minister of Justice, Rita Alarcao Judice and saying the commission’s initial decision had clearly violated the law and amounted to a “manifest abuse of power”.
Pinto has described himself as a whistleblower, but was convicted in Portugal of offences including illegal access to data and attempted extortion and given a four-year suspended sentence.
He wore a bulletproof vest during his first trial in 2020, which was also subject to heightened security measures.
Earlier this year, he was acquitted of 241 counts of illegally accessing email accounts belonging to a number of sports bodies in Portugal, including Benfica.