Sao Paulo — The 44-year-old son of soccer
legend Pele was arrested in Brazil on Tuesday
after losing an appeal in a money laundering case
involving a drug gang. Edson Cholbi do Nascimento, known as Edinho,
had been convicted earlier this year and sentenced
to 33 years in prison for laundering money for the
gang. The former goalkeeper had been allowed to
remain free during the process, but a local judge
said his appeal was rejected. Edinho can appeal again to a higher court, but
judge Suzana Pereira said in her ruling that this
time he must remain in jail. Edinho's lawyers told Brazilian media that they
were surprised with the ruling and will request
Edinho's immediate release. Pele's press office said the former player will
not immediately comment on his son's arrest. The
74-year-old Pele, a World Cup champion with
Brazil in 1958, '62 and '70, successfully
underwent surgery to remove kidney stones last
week. He was discharged from hospital on Saturday. Edinho was taken into custody during a mandatory
monthly visit to a court in the coastal city of
Santos. He had spent about a week in prison in
July before being allowed to appeal in freedom.
He also spent six months in a maximum-security
prison in 2005 after being arrested with 50 others in a sweep aimed at a gang in Santos. Prosecutors
said he was associated with the criminal group. Edinho previously denied the charges against him,
although he publicly said he had used drugs out
of curiosity after he quit professional soccer. In the early 1990s, Edinho was charged with
taking part in a high-speed race in which the other
car hit and killed a motorcyclist. He was sentenced
for manslaughter years later before being
acquitted in 2005. Edinho played in the early 1990s with Santos, the
same team where Pele played during most of his
career. He had been working as an assistant coach
with the eight-time Brazilian champion.