Man City whistleblower to remain in Portugal's witness protection programme

Portugal's Ministry of Justice said on Friday that the decision to remove computer hacker Rui Pinto from the country's witness protection programme has been reversed for the time being. Pinto founded Football Leaks, and the documents he disclosed helped trigger the Premier League (England's top football division) investigation into Manchester City. He had been due to leave the programme on Saturday.

Why the decision was suspended

The ministry said the special security programmes commission, which oversees the programme, had not adequately notified Pinto of the grounds for ending his protection or given him a chance to challenge the decision. Pinto will now have 10 days to assess a risk assessment carried out by the commission, which indicates a low threat to his safety.

Pinto, 37, had earlier said the ruling put him in a life-threatening situation. On X, he thanked Portugal's Minister of Justice, Rita Alarcao Judice, and said the commission's initial decision clearly violated the law and amounted to a "manifest abuse of power".

Link to the City case

Pinto disclosed a large set of confidential football documents, including emails and financial records relating to the English club. 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. The club has appealed.

Pinto joined Portugal's witness protection programme in 2020 after agreeing to co-operate with the authorities and provide information obtained through Football Leaks.

Legal proceedings in Portugal

Pinto describes himself as a whistleblower, but in Portugal he was convicted of offences including illegal access to data and attempted extortion and received a four-year suspended sentence. He wore a bulletproof vest during his first trial in 2020, which was held under heightened security. Earlier this year he was acquitted of 241 counts of illegally accessing email accounts belonging to several sports bodies in Portugal, including Benfica.