CAF vice-president Souleiman Waberi is among several football officials arrested by police criminal investigators in Djibouti in the wake of a financial audit of the local football federation.
Waberi, who was already under intense government scrutiny and forced to resign as the President of the Djiboutian Football Federation a few months ago, was taken into custody on Monday, September 30, 2024 – it has emerged.
The third vice-president president of CAF, who is no longer in charge of the local federation, was surprisingly attending an Executive Committee meeting of the FDF when the police swooped to make the arrests with the treasurer Ali Harred also among those detained.
The Djiboutian police also arrested several key football officials, including Mohamed Yasin, the interim president of the Djibouti Football Federation (FDF).
Although no official statements have been issued by the Djiboutian authorities or the FDF, reports suggest that the arrests followed a government-led financial audit conducted over the past few months.
The nature of the alleged offences remains unclear, but the incident has cast a shadow over the leadership of Djiboutian football, with potential legal action looming.
Among the key questions the police asked Waberi was why he was attending the meeting of the Executive Committee when he had recently been forced by the government to resign as the FDF President as he sought re-election in spring.
As a prominent figure within African football, his detention will likely attract attention across the continent.
