Pakistan's Butt, Asif, Amir jailed for spot-fixing

LONDON // Former Pakistan cricket captain Salman Butt and bowler Mohammad Asif were jailed for 30 months and one year respectively on Thursday after being found guilty of taking bribes to fix parts of a test match against England in 2010.

Pace bowler Mohammad Amir, who pleaded guilty before the trial of his two team mates, was sentenced to six months in a case that prosecutors said had revealed rampant corruption at the heart of international cricket.

The three were part of a gambling-inspired plot to bowl no-balls at pre-arranged times during a test match at Lord’s in London in August, 2010.

Sports agent Mazhar Majeed, who pleaded guilty to conspiracy to cheat and conspiracy to making corrupt payments at a pre-trial hearing, was jailed for two years and eight months at London’s Southwark Crown Court.

Butt, 27, and Asif, 28, were found guilty on Tuesday of taking bribes to deliver pre-arranged no balls.

Amir, 19, admitted his part in the scam before the trial started and had also offered a heartfelt apology during the sentence hearing.

The trio have already been banned from playing by the International Cricket Council for a minimum of five years.