(Reuters) - Australian police have found no evidence of match-fixing in the National Rugby League (NRL) after the conclusion of a two-year investigation, they said on Friday
New South Wales (NSW) state police set up a special task force last year to conduct the probe, three months after making initial enquiries into allegations surrounding a number of championship matches.
Detectives said they uncovered potential criminal offences, including drug supply and money-laundering, unrelated to the NRL, and referred them to the Organised Crime Squad.
"While detectives have not preferred criminal charges relating to these issues, their investigation highlighted activities and practices that are deemed as high-risk for the NRL," a NSW police statement said.
Police have made recommendations to the NRL to ensure the integrity of the league's code of conduct is not compromised by organised crime.
During the probe, detectives identified 13 potential persons of interest and spoke with 161 witnesses. They also executed 59 search warrants seeking betting data for numerous NRL games.
(Reporting by Shrivathsa Sridhar in Bengaluru, editing by Ed Osmond)
