British-born Whelan was arrested on Monday (7 July) at official Fifa accommodation, the Copacabana Palace in Rio, but released the next day.
Yesterday (10 July) a Brazilian judge accepted an indictment for Whelan and 11 others thought to be associated with the scam, which involved illegally selling on VIP tickets and hospitality passes reserved for sponsors, non-governemntal organisations and relatives of players, to the leader of an international, illegal ticket touting ring.
Police said when they entered Whelan’s hotel room, he was not there. Security footage showed him exiting the hotel through the service door an hour earlier. Brazilian newspaper O Globo reported that Whelan had left the hotel with his lawyer Fernando Fernades.
Match Hospitality, which is based in Switzerland, is the main provider of hospitality packages for the World Cup in Brazil and is part of UK sports event management agency Byrom. The company said in a statement on Thursday that it was assisting the police investigation.
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