ZURICH -- FIFA has been urged by Switzerland's attorney general to hand over emails used by Jerome Valcke, its secretary general who was suspended last week.
Valcke was implicated by a FIFA ticketing partner in using his FIFA and Google email accounts to discuss a 2014 World Cup black market tickets deal.
The office of Swiss federal prosecutor Michael Lauber has now stepped up pressure FIFA to unblock access to Valcke's correspondence.
Lauber's spokesman Andre Marty told the Associated Press on Wednesday that the prosecutor has filed a request directly to FIFA lawyers.
"I can confirm that we now want to have access to these sealed email accounts," Marty said.
"The OAG [office of the attorney general] asked FIFA to deliver all information coming from Mr. Valcke's multiple email accounts," he said, adding that so far, "FIFA didn't deliver this email information."
In a statement, FIFA said: "We are committed to cooperating with the authorities and this is an ongoing process."
Valcke denies a ticket agent's claims that he sought cash from sales of top-category tickets for matches in Brazil he knew were being offered at several times face value.
Lauber is investigating possible criminal mismanagement and money laundering in FIFA's business.
The case is widening to examine all aspects of FIFA's affairs after it was launched by FIFA's own criminal complaint last year about possible wrongdoing linked to the 2018-2022 World Cup bidding contests.
FIFA released Valcke from his job last Thursday hours after the allegations were made, and requested a formal investigation by the FIFA Ethics Committee.
Valcke likely faces sanctions even if financial corruption is not proven.
The FIFA code of ethics allows for charges of breach of confidentiality and loyalty, which could be leveled simply for doing official business through private email accounts.