Pacific / Cook Islands

Sport: OFC says Lee Harmon suspension separate issue

13:21 pm on 12 March 2019

The President of Oceania Football says suspended executive Lee Harmon will be able to return to his previous roles unless new information comes to light.

Harmon was last week suspended from all football-related activity for three months and fined $US20,000 for breaching rules on the resale of World Cup tickets.

Cook Islands Football Association President Lee Harmon (c). Photo: Oceania Football

FIFA said that the President of the Cook Islands Football Association, who is also an OFC Vice-President and member of the FIFA Council, had "mutually agreed" the sanction with its ethics committee in a plea bargain.

Lambert Maltock, who was elected to a four year term as OFC President on the weekend, said Lee Harmon's case is not directly related to his involvement with Oceania Football.

"His case at the moment is not directly related to OFC case - it's related to the World Cup tickets," he said.

"It's two different issues but if it has something to link with the OFC directly, the investigation that they're doing - if they prove that he's guilty - he won't come back.

"Because if he is proven guilty automatically he cannot come back into the committee but he's got a right of election and they suspend him for three months and if he serves that he is still [just] a president suspended.

"But if there is another case that stops him from that then I don't think he will come back."

Lambert Maltock Photo: OFC via Phototek