London. 8 March 2012. Howard Beer, an Australian former homicide detective, was giving evidence on day three of Chris Cairns’ libel claim against former Indian Premier League (IPL) commissioner Lalit Modi in London’s High Court. Beer confirmed that at no stage had he handed over any of his findings to anti-corruption officials at the International Cricket Council (ICC).
Cairns, the retired New Zeland international player, is suing Modi over a 2010 tweet that suggested his involvement in match-fixing activity during his time as captain of the Chandigarh Lions in the Indian Cricket League (ICL) – claims which he vigorously denies. Cairns left Chandigarh after three games of the third edition of the ICL, with the official reason given as his failure to disclose an ankle injury.
Lalit Modi
Beer revealed that the suggestion Cairns was involved in match-fixing at the ICL was first put to him by Kiran More, the former India wicketkeeper and one of the league’s executive directors. After an incident in which a player with the Mumbai Champs, Hasan Raza, was alleged to have lied about a man seen entering his room. Beer was told by More not to investigate Raza further.
Beer said he was handicapped in carrying out a full investigation into the Mumbai Champs incident. The court heard that Beer was also told by More that he had information that the game between Mumbai Champs and Chandigarh Lions on 13 October 2008 had been fixed. In separate interviews, conducted as part of Beer’s investigations, Mumbai coach Sandeep Patil and Captain Nathan Astle both reported concerns about the game.
Modi is due to take the stand on Thursday.
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