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FIFA members reelect president Sepp Blatter amid league corruption charges
FIFA - U.S. Department of Justice - justice for human rights does not , but for other people's money and out of jurisdiction and illegal, yes .
JUSTICE NEWS
Department of Justice
Office of Public Affairs
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Wednesday, May 27, 2015
Nine FIFA Officials and Five Corporate Executives Indicted for Racketeering Conspiracy and Corruption
The Defendants Include Two Current FIFA Vice Presidents and the Current and Former Presidents of the Confederation of North, Central American and Caribbean Association Football (CONCACAF); Seven Defendants Arrested Overseas; Guilty Pleas for Four Individual Defendants and Two Corporate
Defendants Also Unsealed
A 47-count indictment was unsealed early this morning in federal court in Brooklyn, New York, charging 14 defendants with racketeering, wire fraud and money laundering conspiracies, among other offenses, in connection with the defendants’ participation in a 24-year scheme to enrich themselves through the corruption of international soccer. The guilty pleas of four individual defendants and two corporate defendants were also unsealed today.
The defendants charged in the indictment include high-ranking officials of the Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA), the organization responsible for the regulation and promotion of soccer worldwide, as well as leading officials of other soccer governing bodies that operate under the FIFA umbrella. Jeffrey Webb and Jack Warner – the current and former presidents of CONCACAF, the continental confederation under FIFA headquartered in the United States – are among the soccer officials charged with racketeering and bribery offenses. The defendants also include U.S. and South American sports marketing executives who are alleged to have systematically paid and agreed to pay well over $150 million in bribes and kickbacks to obtain lucrative media and marketing rights to international soccer tournaments.
The charges were announced by Attorney General Loretta E. Lynch, Acting U.S. Attorney Kelly T. Currie of the Eastern District of New York, Director James B. Comey of the FBI, Assistant Director in Charge Diego W. Rodriguez of the FBI’s New York Field Office, Chief Richard Weber of the Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI) and Special Agent in Charge Erick Martinez of the IRS-CI’s Los Angeles Field Office.
Also earlier this morning, Swiss authorities in Zurich arrested seven of the defendants charged in the indictment, the defendants Jeffrey Webb, Eduardo Li, Julio Rocha, Costas Takkas, Eugenio Figueredo, Rafael Esquivel and José Maria Marin, at the request of the United States. Also this morning, a search warrant is being executed at CONCACAF headquarters in Miami, Florida.
The guilty pleas of the four individual and two corporate defendants that were also unsealed today include the guilty pleas of Charles Blazer, the long-serving former general secretary of CONCACAF and former U.S. representative on the FIFA executive committee; José Hawilla, the owner and founder of the Traffic Group, a multinational sports marketing conglomerate headquartered in Brazil; and two of Hawilla’s companies, Traffic Sports International Inc. and Traffic Sports USA Inc., which is based in Florida.
“The indictment alleges corruption that is rampant, systemic, and deep-rooted both abroad and here in the United States,” said Attorney General Lynch. “It spans at least two generations of soccer officials who, as alleged, have abused their positions of trust to acquire millions of dollars in bribes and kickbacks. And it has profoundly harmed a multitude of victims, from the youth leagues and developing countries that should benefit from the revenue generated by the commercial rights these organizations hold, to the fans at home and throughout the world whose support for the game makes those rights valuable. Today’s action makes clear that this Department of Justice intends to end any such corrupt practices, to root out misconduct, and to bring wrongdoers to justice – and we look forward to continuing to work with other countries in this effort.”
Attorney General Lynch extended her grateful appreciation to the authorities of the government of Switzerland, as well as several other international partners, for their outstanding assistance in this investigation.
“Today’s announcement should send a message that enough is enough,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Currie. “After decades of what the indictment alleges to be brazen corruption, organized international soccer needs a new start – a new chance for its governing institutions to provide honest oversight and support of a sport that is beloved across the world, increasingly so here in the United States. Let me be clear: this indictment is not the final chapter in our investigation.”
Acting U.S. Attorney Currie extended his thanks to the agents, analysts and other investigative personnel with the FBI New York Eurasian Joint Organized Crime Squad and the IRS-CI Los Angeles Field Office, as well as their colleagues abroad, for their tremendous effort in this case.
“As charged in the indictment, the defendants fostered a culture of corruption and greed that created an uneven playing field for the biggest sport in the world,” said Director Comey. “Undisclosed and illegal payments, kickbacks, and bribes became a way of doing business at FIFA. I want to commend the investigators and prosecutors around the world who have pursued this case so diligently, for so many years.”
“When leaders in an organization resort to cheating the very members that they are supposed to represent, they must be held accountable,” said Chief Weber. “Corruption, tax evasion and money laundering are certainly not the cornerstones of any successful business. Whether you call it soccer or football, the fans, players and sponsors around the world who love this game should not have to worry about officials corrupting their sport. This case isn't about soccer, it is about fairness and following the law. IRS-CI will continue to investigate financial crimes and follow the money wherever it may lead around the world, leveling the playing field for those who obey the law.”
The charges in the indictment are merely allegations, and the defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
The Enterprise
FIFA is composed of 209 member associations, each representing organized soccer in a particular nation or territory, including the United States and four of its overseas territories. FIFA also recognizes six continental confederations that assist it in governing soccer in different regions of the world. The U.S. Soccer Federation is one of 41 member associations of the confederation known as CONCACAF, which has been headquartered in the United States throughout the period charged in the indictment. The South American confederation, called CONMEBOL, is also a focus of the indictment.
As alleged in the indictment, FIFA and its six continental confederations, together with affiliated regional federations, national member associations and sports marketing companies, constitute an enterprise of legal entities associated in fact for purposes of the federal racketeering laws. The principal – and entirely legitimate – purpose of the enterprise is to regulate and promote the sport of soccer worldwide.
As alleged in the indictment, one key way the enterprise derives revenue is to commercialize the media and marketing rights associated with soccer events and tournaments. The organizing entity that owns those rights – as FIFA and CONCACAF do with respect to the World Cup and Gold Cup, their respective flagship tournaments – sells them to sports marketing companies, often through multi-year contracts covering multiple editions of the tournaments. The sports marketing companies, in turn, sell the rights downstream to TV and radio broadcast networks, major corporate sponsors and other sub-licensees who want to broadcast the matches or promote their brands. The revenue generated from these contracts is substantial: according to FIFA, 70% of its $5.7 billion in total revenues between 2011 and 2014 was attributable to the sale of TV and marketing rights to the 2014 World Cup.
The Racketeering Conspiracy
The indictment alleges that, between 1991 and the present, the defendants and their co-conspirators corrupted the enterprise by engaging in various criminal activities, including fraud, bribery and money laundering. Two generations of soccer officials abused their positions of trust for personal gain, frequently through an alliance with unscrupulous sports marketing executives who shut out competitors and kept highly lucrative contracts for themselves through the systematic payment of bribes and kickbacks. All told, the soccer officials are charged with conspiring to solicit and receive well over $150 million in bribes and kickbacks in exchange for their official support of the sports marketing executives who agreed to make the unlawful payments.
Most of the schemes alleged in the indictment relate to the solicitation and receipt of bribes and kickbacks by soccer officials from sports marketing executives in connection with the commercialization of the media and marketing rights associated with various soccer matches and tournaments, including FIFA World Cup qualifiers in the CONCACAF region, the CONCACAF Gold Cup, the CONCACAF Champions League, the jointly organized CONMEBOL/CONCACAF Copa América Centenario, the CONMEBOL Copa América, the CONMEBOL Copa Libertadores and the Copa do Brasil, which is organized by the Brazilian national soccer federation (CBF). Other alleged schemes relate to the payment and receipt of bribes and kickbacks in connection with the sponsorship of CBF by a major U.S. sportswear company, the selection of the host country for the 2010 World Cup and the 2011 FIFA presidential election.
The Indicted Defendants
As set forth in the indictment, the defendants and their co-conspirators fall generally into three categories: soccer officials acting in a fiduciary capacity within FIFA and one or more of its constituent organizations; sports media and marketing company executives; and businessmen, bankers and other trusted intermediaries who laundered illicit payments.
Nine of the defendants were FIFA officials by operation of the FIFA statutes, as well as officials of one or more other bodies:
- Jeffrey Webb: Current FIFA vice president and executive committee member, CONCACAF president, Caribbean Football Union (CFU) executive committee member and Cayman Islands Football Association (CIFA) president.
- Eduardo Li: Current FIFA executive committee member-elect, CONCACAF executive committee member and Costa Rican soccer federation (FEDEFUT) president.
- Julio Rocha: Current FIFA development officer. Former Central American Football Union (UNCAF) president and Nicaraguan soccer federation (FENIFUT) president.
- Costas Takkas: Current attaché to the CONCACAF president. Former CIFA general secretary.
- Jack Warner: Former FIFA vice president and executive committee member, CONCACAF president, CFU president and Trinidad and Tobago Football Federation (TTFF) special adviser.
- Eugenio Figueredo: Current FIFA vice president and executive committee member. Former CONMEBOL president and Uruguayan soccer federation (AUF) president.
- Rafael Esquivel: Current CONMEBOL executive committee member and Venezuelan soccer federation (FVF) president.
- José Maria Marin: Current member of the FIFA organizing committee for the Olympic football tournaments. Former CBF president.
- Nicolás Leoz: Former FIFA executive committee member and CONMEBOL president.
Four of the defendants were sports marketing executives:
- Alejandro Burzaco: Controlling principal of Torneos y Competencias S.A., a sports marketing business based in Argentina, and its affiliates.
- Aaron Davidson: President of Traffic Sports USA Inc. (Traffic USA).
- Hugo and Mariano Jinkis: Controlling principals of Full Play Group S.A., a sports marketing business based in Argentina, and its affiliates.
And one of the defendants was in the broadcasting business but allegedly served as an intermediary to facilitate illicit payments between sports marketing executives and soccer officials:
- José Margulies: Controlling principal of Valente Corp. and Somerton Ltd.
The Convicted Individuals and Corporations
The following individuals and corporations previously pleaded guilty under seal:
On July 15, 2013, the defendant Daryll Warner, son of defendant Jack Warner and a former FIFA development officer, waived indictment and pleaded guilty to a two-count information charging him with wire fraud and the structuring of financial transactions.
On Oct. 25, 2013, the defendant Daryan Warner waived indictment and pleaded guilty to a three-count information charging him with wire fraud conspiracy, money laundering conspiracy and the structuring of financial transactions. Daryan Warner forfeited over $1.1 million around the time of his plea and has agreed to pay a second forfeiture money judgment at the time of sentencing.
On Nov. 25, 2013, the defendant Charles Blazer, the former CONCACAF general secretary and a former FIFA executive committee member, waived indictment and pleaded guilty to a 10-count information charging him with racketeering conspiracy, wire fraud conspiracy, money laundering conspiracy, income tax evasion and failure to file a Report of Foreign Bank and Financial Accounts (FBAR). Blazer forfeited over $1.9 million at the time of his plea and has agreed to pay a second amount to be determined at the time of sentencing.
On Dec. 12, 2014, the defendant José Hawilla, the owner and founder of the Traffic Group, the Brazilian sports marketing conglomerate, waived indictment and pleaded guilty to a four-count information charging him with racketeering conspiracy, wire fraud conspiracy, money laundering conspiracy and obstruction of justice. Hawilla also agreed to forfeit over $151 million, $25 million of which was paid at the time of his plea.
On May 14, 2015, the defendants Traffic Sports USA Inc. and Traffic Sports International Inc. pleaded guilty to wire fraud conspiracy.
All money forfeited by the defendants is being held in reserve to ensure its availability to satisfy any order of restitution entered at sentencing for the benefit of any individuals or entities that qualify as victims of the defendants’ crimes under federal law.
* * * *
The indictment unsealed today has been assigned to U.S. District Court Judge Raymond J. Dearie of the Eastern District of New York.
The indicted and convicted individual defendants face maximum terms of incarceration of 20 years for the RICO conspiracy, wire fraud conspiracy, wire fraud, money laundering conspiracy, money laundering and obstruction of justice charges. In addition, Eugenio Figueredo faces a maximum term of incarceration of 10 years for a charge of naturalization fraud and could have his U.S. citizenship revoked. He also faces a maximum term of incarceration of five years for each tax charge. Charles Blazer faces a maximum term of incarceration of 10 years for the FBAR charge and five years for the tax evasion charges; and Daryan and Daryll Warner face maximum terms of incarceration of 10 years for structuring financial transactions to evade currency reporting requirements. Each individual defendant also faces mandatory restitution, forfeiture and a fine. By the terms of their plea agreements, the corporate defendants face fines of $500,000 and one year of probation.
The government’s investigation is ongoing.
The government’s case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Evan M. Norris, Amanda Hector, Darren A. LaVerne, Samuel P. Nitze, Keith D. Edelman and Brian D. Morris of the Eastern District of New York, with assistance provided by the Justice Department’s Office of International Affairs and Organized Crime and Gang Section.
The Indicted Defendants:
ALEJANDRO BURZACO
Age: 50
Nationality: Argentina
AARON DAVIDSON
Age: 44
Nationality: USA
RAFAEL ESQUIVEL
Age: 68
Nationality: Venezuela
EUGENIO FIGUEREDO
Age: 83
Nationality: USA, Uruguay
HUGO JINKIS
Age: 70
Nationality: Argentina
MARIANO JINKIS
Age: 40
Nationality: Argentina
NICOLÁS LEOZ
Age: 86
Nationality: Paraguay
EDUARDO LI
Age: 56
Nationality: Costa Rica
JOSÉ MARGULIES, also known as José Lazaro
Age: 75
Nationality: Brazil
JOSÉ MARIA MARIN
Age: 83
Nationality: Brazil
JULIO ROCHA
Age: 64
Nationality: Nicaragua
COSTAS TAKKAS
Age: 58
Nationality: United Kingdom
JACK WARNER
Age: 72
Nationality: Trinidad and Tobago
JEFFREY WEBB
Age: 50
Nationality: Cayman Islands
The Convicted Defendants:
CHARLES BLAZER
Age: 70
Nationality: USA
JOSÉ HAWILLA
Age: 71
Nationality: Brazil
DARYAN WARNER
Age: 46
Nationality: Trinidad and Tobago, Grenada
DARYLL WARNER
Age: 40
Nationality: USA, Trinidad and Tobago
TRAFFIC SPORTS INTERNATIONAL INC.
Registered: British Virgin Islands
TRAFFIC SPORTS USA INC.
Registered: USA
E.D.N.Y. Docket Numbers:
United States v. Daryll Warner, 13 Cr. 402 (WFK)
United States v. Daryan Warner, 13 Cr. 584 (WFK)
United States v. Charles Blazer, 13 Cr. 602 (RJD)
United States v. José Hawilla, 14 Cr. 609 (RJD)
United States v. Traffic Sports International, Inc., 14 Cr. 609 (RJD)
United States v. Traffic Sports USA, Inc., 14 Cr. 609 (RJD)
United States v. Jeffrey Webb et al., 15 Cr. 252 (RJD)
Documents:
Webb et al. Indictment (12.25 MB)
Daryan Warner Information (320.77 KB)
Daryll Warner Information (2.26 MB)
Hawilla et al. Information (2.98 MB)
Charles Blazer Information (4.45 MB)
FIFA Graphic (490 KB)
Violent protests in Ferguson, Missouri led to 78 arrests overnight - with the majority of people handcuffed for refusing to disperse under a heavily-armed police presence.
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APARTHAEID IN UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
Ferguson grand jury decision divides America - Police moved the media on after a shooting was reported in the area
Highway Patrol boss hits out at 'violent agitators' using demonstrations to commit crimes as two are shot and 78 arrested as violence descends on Ferguson for a NINTH night
- Missouri Highway Patrol Captain Ron Johnson said on Tuesday that officers 'came under heavy gunfire'
- Captain Johnson said two demonstrators had been shot - but not by police
- Tense standoffs lead to police throwing teargas and stun grenades after Molotov cocktails thrown
- Police moved the media on after a shooting was reported in the area
- President Obama said on Monday although he sympathized with 'passions and anger' in Ferguson, looting and attacks on police could not continue
- Obama sending Attorney General Eric Holder to Ferguson on Wednesday to meet with federal law enforcement authorities investigating Brown's death
- Officer Darren Wilson, 28, revealed on Friday as the cop who shot dead the unarmed teenager. He is on paid leave pending the investigation
Violent protests in Ferguson, Missouri led to 78 arrests overnight - with the majority of people handcuffed for refusing to disperse under a heavily-armed police presence.
Demonstrations, mostly peaceful but with spasms of violence by smaller groups, have flared since Michael Brown, 18, was shot dead while walking down a residential street on August 9. State Highway Patrol Captain Ron Johnson said on Monday night 'our officers came under heavy gunfire' in one area.
The majority of those arrested were from Missouri but there were a few out-of-towners. Two people from St Louis were arrested for unlawful use of a weapon and a man from Illinois, was jailed for interfering with an officer.
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Protester pours fuel into Red BBQ restaurant, after a previous Molotov cocktail he threw burns outside the building. The fire outside was put out by fellow protesters, Ferguson, Missouri on Monday night
Missouri Highway Patrol Captain Ron Johnson - who took over patrol in Ferguson as of Thursday night - told CNN later that two demonstrators were shot, but not by police, and had been transported to hospital
Police fire tear gas in the direction of where bottles were thrown from crowds gathered near the QuikTrip on W. Florissant Avenue on Monday in the St Louis suburb of Ferguson
As officers sat with guns pointed atop armored vehicles, the authorities used LRAD (Long Range Acoustic Device) crowd control systems to send out a painful noise to try and disperse the crowd
The relatively peaceful protests eventually turned nasty on the streets of the St. Louis suburb after police in riot gear and gas masks formed a barricade and stood watch over the protesters for almost two hours
The arrest number on Tuesday more than doubled the arrests earlier reported by police, NBC reported. The total arrest number being reported was only for the St Louis County Jail with numbers unclear for other locations.
A total of 18 people from outside Missouri were arrested during clashes between police and protesters, some from as far away as New York City and California.
A St Louis County Jail official told MailOnline today that he was not authorized to comment on the number of arrests.
Captain Johnson said that 'violent agitators' are using largely peaceful demonstrations as an excuse to commit crime. He said some of those arrested had traveled across the country, from as far afield as New York and California, to take advantage of the town's unsettled state.
'Not a single bullet was fired by officers despite coming under heavy attack,' he told a news conference today.
Riot police had confiscated two guns from protesters and what looked like a petrol bomb. Four officers had been injured.
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Johnson separately told CNN that two people were shot within the crowd, but not by police, and were taken to hospital. There was no immediate word on their condition.
'This has to stop. I don't want anybody to get hurt. We have to find a way to stop this,' said Johnson, an African-American who grew up in the area and who took over security efforts last Thursday after the mostly white local force was accused of using excessive force against blacks.
He added: 'This nation is watching each and every one of us.
A male protestor stands in the street while clouds of tear gas erupt from canisters in Ferguson on Monday, a once-quiet St Louis suburb which has been rocked by racial tensions following the shooting of unarmed black teen Michael Brown
A woman picks up garbage in the street left over from protestors in Ferguson. Confrontation resumed as protestors marched towards heavily armed police on Monday night. Law enforcement reported 78 arrests
St Louis County Police have today released images of guns an ammunition they say were found on protesters during Ferguson demonstrations last night
Police also tweeted an image of a Molotov cocktail they confiscated after a ninth night of violence in Ferguson during which shots were fired
Law enforcement officers point their weapons at protesters during demonstrations in Ferguson following the death of Michael Brown. The police have been heavily-criticized for their overly-militarized approach
'I am not going to let the criminals that have come here from across this country, or live in this neighborhood, define this community. We do not want to lose another life.'
Michael Brown's parents told Today on Tuesday that bringing justice for their son, by prosecuting his shooter Officer Darren Wilson, is the way to bring peace to Ferguson.
The National Guard, the U.S. state militia, has been deployed in the St. Louis suburb of 21,000 people to stop looting and burning that have punctuated the protests.
President Obama and civil rights leaders have appealed for calm while a federal investigation into the shooting gets underway.
'While I understand the passions and the anger that arise over the death of Michael Brown, giving in to that anger by looting or carrying guns, and even attacking the police, only serves to raise tensions and stir chaos,' Obama told a news conference on Monday.
'It undermines, rather than advancing, justice.'
Monday night's clashes between riot police and protesters followed hours of mostly peaceful demonstrations.
Police had closed a roadway to traffic to provide a path for marches but said a smaller group within the larger crowd hurled bottles, rocks and petrol bombs at officers standing near armored vehicles.
Tonight Ron Johnson has defended his decision to clear the streets, including taking journalists into custody, saying it was difficult to tell reporters apart from protesters
In a news conference Ron Johnson said that the nation was watching and judging what is happening in Ferguson. Both armed police and protesters were pictured wearing gas masks on Monday night
Police responded by first throwing tear gas and stun grenades and then moving in with guns drawn to clear the area
Officers responded by firing tear gas-filled canisters and a noise cannon to try to disperse the throng. Police also used stun grenades on protesters who hurled rocks, bottles and Molotov cocktails.
Police sat with guns pointed atop armored vehicles while authorities used LRAD (Long Range Acoustic Device) crowd control systems to send out a painful noise to try and disperse the crowd.
Some demonstrators, including a church minister using a blow horn, urged crowds to calm down.
CNN’s Don Lemon and Jack Tapper were presenting live from the middle of protests when teargas was thrown and they got caught up in the melee.
Lemon quickly put on his bullet proof vest and gas mask while continuing to present live TV. Tapper gave his gas mask to a photographer who had been on the receiving end of the tear gas attack.
The reporters were eventually moved on by police, who said it wasn't safe for them to remain because there had been a shooting in the area.
Earlier in the evening Tapper had liken the police presence in Ferguson and the weaponry on show to what he had seen while reporting from Afghanistan.
‘These are armed police, with - not machine guns - semi-automatic rifles, with batons, with shields, many of them dressed for combat. Now why are they doing this? I don’t know. Because there is no threat going on here. None that merits this. There is none,' said Tapper.
'Absolutely there have been looters, absolutely over the last nine days there’s been violence, but there is nothing going on on this street right now that merits this scene out of Bagram. Nothing.
‘So if people wonder why the people of Ferguson, Missouri are so upset, this is part of the reason. What is this? This doesn't make any sense.’
Protesters had began throwing rocks at MSNBC's Chris Hayes during a live broadcast, demanding he ‘tell the true story'.
As police began trying to clear the streets of protesters, several took their frustrations out on Hayes.
'The gentleman behind me in the mask is telling me this is a civil rights movement, it's just not about Mike Brown, it's about all people,' Hayes explained. 'There's a lot of frustration.'
A photographer working for the Getty photography agency was arrested in Ferguson on Monday. Scott Olson was arrested because he wasn't in the required media area, said police.
Michael Brown (pictured left) was shot multiple times by police officer Darren Wilson (right) as he turned around with his hands up, an eye-witness said today
Getty Images photographer Scott Olson was arrested while covering demonstrators on Monday for apparently not being in the required media area
CNN reporters Don Lemon and Jack Tapper were presenting live from the middle of protests when the teargas was thrown and they got caught up in the melee
The Missouri National guard patrols a police command center on West Florissant Avenue in Ferguson, Missouri
There have been largely peaceful protests over Brown's killing elsewhere in the U.S. including in St Louis, New York, Seattle and Oakland.
Missouri Governor Jay Nixon declared a state of emergency in Ferguson on Saturday and a curfew from midnight to 5am. The curfew was lifted last night. He also mobilized the National Guard to back up state police.
Obama said he told the governor the use of the National Guard should be limited and called for conciliation in communities hit by the unrest. U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder will visit Ferguson on Wednesday, Obama said.
Michael Brown's parents, Michael Brown Snr and Lesley McSpadden, told Today on Tuesday that 'justice will bring peace'
Holder said more than 40 FBI agents were canvassing Ferguson neighborhoods in their investigation and an additional medical examination was being performed on Brown. Results of autopsies done by federal and St Louis County authorities were pending.
Brown was shot by Ferguson police officer Darren Wilson, 28. The cope is now on paid leave pending the results of the investigation and has gone into hiding.
Brown was shot at least six times, including twice in the head, and may have been lowering his head in surrender when the fatal shot struck, according to Brown family attorney Daryl Parks.
There were no signs of struggle with the officer and no gunshot residue on the 18-year-old's body - although his clothing still has to be examined.
Ferguson police quoted Wilson as saying he had asked Brown and a friend to move off the street where they were walking, and onto the sidewalk. Wilson reported that Brown reached into his patrol car and struggled for his gun.
St. Louis County prosecutors' spokesman Edward Magee said the case could be presented this week to an investigating grand jury which would decide whether Wilson will be indicted.
Ferguson has seen a stark demographic shift in recent decades, going from all white to mostly black. Out of a police force of 53, three officers are black.
Many Ferguson residents say Brown's killing was emblematic of police excesses against blacks, a charge authorities deny.
Officer Darren Wilson was caught on a cellphone video staring 'in disbelief' at the body of Michael Brown moments after he shot the unarmed teenager dead in a Ferguson, Missouri street on August 9
Brown's friend Dorian Johnson, 22, said Wilson had reached out of his car window to grab Brown and the teenager tried to get away.
Johnson said Brown held up his hands to surrender but Wilson got out of his car and shot him several times.
One young man's life cut short - another's changed forever: Darren Wilson captured looking at Michael Brown's body
A cellphone video released on Monday revealed Ferguson police officer Darren Wilson 'staring in disbelief' at the lifeless Michael Brown moments after he shot him dead in the street.
Eye-witness Piaget Crenshaw, lives in an apartment overlooking the street, where the 18-year-old was killed on August 9 released the recording on Monday of the cop pacing back and forth.
Ms Crenshaw said Officer Wilson paced back and forth along the street next to Michael Brown's body as if he was 'in disbelief' and 'bewildered' by what had just happened.
The woman was unclear what exactly happened between Brown and Wilson at the police cruiser but said that it appeared as if the officer was trying to pull the teenager into the car.
She said Brown got away and she heard shots fired, none of which appeared to hit Brown although she believed one grazed him.
It was then Brown 'turned around and was shot multiple times'.
She added: 'He was running away and when he [Brown] turned around he was shot.'
Officer Wilson is now on paid administrative leave following the shooting death of Michael Brown, pending the outcome of the investigation into the shooting. The 28-year-old officer won a commendation for 'extraordinary effort in the line of duty' on February of this year.
'He never intended for any of this to happen,' Ferguson police Chief Thomas Jackson said last week. 'It's devastating, absolutely devastating.'
Several other eye-witnesses have also claimed that Brown had his hands up to signal that he was surrendering.
However assistant pathologist Shawn Parcells told CNN on Monday afternoon that it cannot be proved from the initial autopsy whether Brown was rushing the officer or simply standing at a distance.
Family lawyer Benjamin Crump described the teen's death as an 'execution in broad daylight'. He said it was important for the family to have their own autopsy results as they did not trust the work of the local police.
Later on Monday the St Louis County medical examiner also confirmed that Brown had been shot between six and eight times.
Ferguson Police Chief Thomas Jackson released the name of Officer Wilson last Friday after mounting public pressure. He had waited several days to release the name after saying that the officer received death threats
The National Bar Association, containing the largest network of black attorneys and judges, filed a lawsuit on Monday against Ferguson and its police department, demanding it protect evidence of the shooting and arrests made during protests.
Looting has left a number of Ferguson stores in shambles. Two fires were set on Monday evening, one at a business and one at an unoccupied home, Johnson said.
The disturbances are the worst of their kind for more than a year. In July 2013, there were angry, albeit peaceful, protests in cities across the United States over the acquittal in a Florida second-degree murder and manslaughter trial of neighborhood watch volunteer George Zimmerman, a white Hispanic, who shot dead an unarmed black teenager, Trayvon Martin, in the street during a scuffle in February 2012.
Leaders of the Nation of Islam and other black activist groups working to calm tensions in Ferguson are asking protesters to clear the streets of the St. Louis suburb at sunset amid the National Guard's arrival.
Organizers from the New Black Panther Party, Black Lawyers for Justice and other groups joined St. Louis-area community activists on Monday to again call for restraint on the part of protesters seething over the police shooting death of 18-year-old Michael Brown.
They also condemned Missouri Governor Jay Nixon's decision to summon the National Guard, which they fear could escalate the violence.
The call to clear the streets came as police accelerated their own crowd control efforts Monday, including the blocking of access to the burned-out QuikTrip convenience store that has become the hub of demonstrations.
Rapper and St. Louis native Nelly appeared in Ferguson, Missouri, on Monday night and appealed to local residents to remain calm following more than a week of protests.
Speaking before a large crowd, Nelly said violent protests weren't the right way for the community to come to terms with what had happened.
'We've got to understand that we have options and stop choosing the reaction option cause at the end of the day we gonna pay - our brother are gonna be the ones in jail,' he said.
The rapper, best known for his 2002 number one Hot In Heere, had been heavily criticized on social media in recent days for being of touch with what was happening in Ferguson after he called on local people to 'calm down.'
'I understand the frustration, but we have to strategize before we overreact,' he told TMZ on Saturday. 'We don't get no do-over on s**t like this, so we have to do it right the first time.
'Ain't nothing happen no different that hasn't been happening... At the end of the day, we should have waited to strategize first and take all the right steps to organize.'
A protester is detained as demonstrations got out of hand on Monday night in the St Louis suburb
A lone man walks in front of heavily-armed police lines in Ferguson as 78 people are reported to have been arrested
A protester walks away after appearing to have been hit with tear gas during another night of violence in Ferguson, Missouri
Police fire tear gas from atop an armored personnel carrier on Monday night in the St. Louis suburb
The scene was relatively peaceful until midnight when tense standoffs lead to police throwing teargas and stun grenades amid high racial tensions in Ferguson
Protesters walk through a cloud of tear gas during Monday's disturbances in Ferguson
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