Banned Sandro Tonali given 2-month suspended soccer ban for breaking betting rules

LONDON (AP) — Newcastle midfielder Sandro Tonali was given a suspended two-month ban for breaching betting rules, the English Football Association said on Thursday.

Tonali is already serving a 10-month ban issued by the Italian federation for betting on teams he played for, which has ruled him out of action since October.

The FA said Tonali admitted to breaching its rules on 50 occasions by placing bets on matches last year from Aug. 12 to Oct. 12. He self-reported these breaches on Oct. 20 and admitted to betting on four Newcastle matches — three of which he was involved in — but always on his team to win.

An independent regulatory commission sanctioned 23-year-old Tonali with a two-month ban that was suspended until the end of next season “pending any further breaches” of the betting rules as well as a 20,000 pounds ($25,000) fine and warning.

“The compelling reasons to suspend the sporting sanction include the fact that Tonali self-referred this misconduct, made full admissions as to it, and did so in circumstances where there is no other evidence to support these misconduct proceedings,” the commission said.

Tonali joined Newcastle from AC Milan last July for a fee reportedly worth up to 60 million pounds ($76.3 million). But he made only 12 appearances for the club after being caught up in a wider betting investigation that saw Juventus midfielder Nicolò Fagioli banned for seven months.

Tonali told prosecutors he bet on Milan and Brescia when he played for those clubs. Tonali's agent, Giuseppe Riso, said his client had a gambling problem.

Tonali agreed to a plea bargain with the Italian federation that included therapy for a gambling addiction.

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FILE - Newcastle's Sandro Tonali walks on the field prior the Champions League group F soccer match between Newcastle and Dortmund at St. James' Park, in Newcastle, England, Wednesday, Oct. 25, 2023. Newcastle midfielder Sandro Tonali has been handed a two-month suspended ban for breaching English soccer's betting rules, the Football Association announced on Thursday, May 2, 2024. Tonali is already serving a 10-month ban issued by the Italian soccer federation for betting on teams he played for, which has ruled him out of action since October. (AP Photo/Scott Heppell, File)

FILE - Newcastle's Sandro Tonali applauds as he leaves the pitch during the Champions League group F soccer match between AC Milan and Newcastle at the San Siro stadium in Milan, Italy, on Sept. 19, 2023. Newcastle midfielder Sandro Tonali has been handed a two-month suspended ban for breaching English soccer's betting rules, the Football Association announced on Thursday, May 2, 2024. Tonali is already serving a 10-month ban issued by the Italian soccer federation for betting on teams he played for, which has ruled him out of action since October. (AP Photo/Antonio Calanni, File)

AUSTIN, Texas (AP) —

Texas Gov. Greg Abbot issued a full pardon Thursday to a former U.S. Army sergeant convicted of murder for fatally shooting an armed demonstrator in 2020 during nationwide protests against police violence and racial injustice.

Abbott announced the pardon just minutes after the Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles disclosed it had made a unanimous recommendation that Perry be pardoned and have his firearms rights restored. Perry has been held in state prison on a 25-year sentence since his conviction in 2023.

The Republican governor had previously ordered the board to review Daniel Perry’s case and said earlier that he would sign a pardon if recommended. The board, which is appointed by the governor, announced its unanimous recommendation in a message posted on the agency website and Abbott's pardon swiftly followed.

Abbott’s demand for a review of Perry’s case followed pressure from former Fox News star Tucker Carlson, who on national television had urged the Republican governor to intervene after the sergeant was convicted at trial in April 2022. Perry was sentenced to 25 years in prison after prosecutors used his social media history and text messages to portray him as a racist who may commit violence again.

A jury in Austin had convicted Perry of murder in the death of 28-year-old Garrett Foster, an Air Force veteran who had been legally carrying an AK-47 while marching in a Black Lives Matter protest. Perry was working as a ride-share driver in July 2020, when he turned his car onto a street crowded with demonstrators and shot Foster before driving off.

Prosecutors argued at trial that Perry could have driven away without opening fire and witnesses testified that they never saw Foster raise his gun. The sergeant’s defense attorneys argued Foster, who is white, did raise the rifle and that Perry had no choice but to shoot. Perry, who is also white, did not take the witness stand and jurors deliberated for two days before finding him guilty.

FILE - Daniel Perry enters the courtroom at the Blackwell-Thurman Criminal Justice Center, May 10, 2023, in Austin, Texas. The Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles on Thursday, May 16, 2024, recommended a full pardon for Perry, a former U.S. Army sergeant convicted of murder for fatally shooting an armed demonstrator in 2020 during nationwide protests against police violence and racial injustice. (Jay Janner/Austin American-Statesman via AP, Pool, File)