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I was nearly raped while serving time in prison for match fixing in Singapore.
This is just one of a number of shocking claims by former Sembawang Rangers and Geylang United FC goalkeeper Lutz Pfannenstiel.
He also alleges that he was physically abused by prison inmates and had his nose broken at least twice, and that Corrupt Practices Investigation Bureau (CPIB) officers had assaulted him during questioning.
Mr Pfannenstiel, 38, told UK football magazine Four Four Two that in 2001, he was nearly raped by other inmates during his 101-day stay at the Queenstown Remand Prison.
In 2008, the German national became the only footballer to have played more than 400 games on six continents for 25 different clubs.
He claimed that during 48 hours of detention, he was interrogated like a "hardened criminal" by CPIB officers who slapped him and kept him naked in a cold cell.
When contacted by The New Paper on Monday, CPIB and the Singapore Prison Service strongly refuted these allegations.
A CPIB spokesman called Mr Pfannenstiel's allegations "baseless and unfounded", adding that the "CPIB officers had conducted themselves professionally" during investigations.
The Prison Service was just as surprised with the claims.
Said its spokesman: "Throughout his time in prison, Mr Pfannenstiel did not lodge any complaints to the authorities, even though he had many opportunities to do so.
"Mr Pfannenstiel, like all inmates, was checked daily by our officers, and any sign of injuries would have been noticed and referred to our doctors."
His medical records did not reflect such injuries, much less a broken nose, the spokesman added. When contacted, one of Mr Pfannenstiel's then lawyers, Mr Suppiah Krishnamurthi, said he could not recollect if the latter had raised the alleged abuse by CPIB officers.
But Mr Krishnamurthi added: "If there had been any form of allegations, we would have challenged his statements (during the trial).
"There was no trial within a trial to challenge the validity of his statements."
When TNP spoke to Mr Pfannenstiel last week, he maintained his allegations, but said he has moved on.
He said his time behind bars inspired him to pursue his football career with a vengeance and to make a difference to society.
"The time I spent in prison was so tough that it completely changed me," he said in a phone interview.
"I had always enjoyed my life as a football player - the parties, the cars and the girls. But (in prison) a lot of things became more important to me."
He claimed that being placed in a cell with people charged with murder and rape forced him to toughen up quickly. The constant bullying made him angry.
He told Four Four Two: "I was never a fighter before, but for the next 10 days I beat... anyone who crossed me. Eventually, they began to leave me be."
Mr Pfannenstiel, who played in Germany's Under-17 team in 1989, is now head of international relations and scouting for German Bundesliga club TSG 1899 Hoffenheim.
'I'm innocent'
He was playing for Geylang United in 2000 when he was charged, but he still insists he is innocent. He claimed that a man had approached him at a petrol station and asked him how Geylang United would fare in their next match. (See report on facing page.)
"I didn't know he was a bookie, and when anybody asks if we were going to win, I would say we would. Geylang was a good team. We normally win," he said.
He said he did not hold a grudge against the bookie or Singapore.
"There is no way (to look) back in anger and it's time to focus on the future. I want to tell my story - the good things that happened to me - after I came home from Singapore," he said.
Mr Pfannenstiel left prison in April 2001 with his career and reputation in tatters.
He returned to Germany and later went to England, where he spent time with his girlfriend.
That same year, he was given a chance to play football again in New Zealand for Dunedin Technical.
He was with the club for five years, but went on loan to other clubs in Norway, Canada, England and Germany during that time.
At the same time, he pursued his studies in sports and tourism.
In 2002, just when he was getting his life back in order, he collided with a player during a game. His lungs collapsed and he was in a coma for a few hours.
Said Mr Pfannenstiel: "I had no pulse. I was clinically dead for three minutes.
"When I woke up in a hospital, I screamed at the nurses telling them to let me continue the game."
He said that after his "two deaths" - the first when his career died in Singapore and then during his coma - he realised that he was destined for more important things in life.
"There must be a reason why I survived both times...I felt that I needed to give something back (to society)," he said.
So in 2007, he decided to do charity work through football.
The next year he embarked on his idea - Global United Football Club - to spread awareness of climate change through famous footballers, such as Germany's Lothar Matthaeus, Czech Republic's Pavel Nedved and Brazil's Aldair.
Celebrity matches
Global United has organised more than 10 celebrity matches in Germany, Namibia, Switzerland and the US.
Last year, Mr Pfannenstiel and some international players went to Pakistan to help families affected by the floods, working with US-based organisation The Sanneh Foundation.
Mr Tony Sanneh of The Sanneh Foundation told TNP last week: "The collaboration with Global United was possible only because Lutz has always been transparent with his objectives.
"While we did kick some balls with locals in Pakistan, we didn't get to play any matches because it was after all a disaster relief mission."
And Mr Pfannenstiel has other ideas. One of them involves staging a match in Antarctica in 2014. If this plan succeeds, it will fulfil his dream of playing football on all seven continents. He said: "I'm willing to suffer for this cause."
Next year, part of his "suffering" may include being locked up in an igloo or staying on top of a tree in the Amazon for a week.
He intends to maintain a link with netizens and the media during his publicity stunt to direct attention to global warming.
Said Mr Pfannenstiel: "I hope people will wake up to what's happening to our environment. "Being boxed up in an igloo may bring flashbacks of my time in the Singapore prison, but I think I will be okay."
Jailed for taking bribes
Geylang United goalie Lutz Pfannenstiel and Sembawang Rangers defender Mirko Jurilj were charged with corruption in August 2000.
A CPIB spokesman said Pfannenstiel was charged with "three counts of corruptly agreeing to accept gratification as an inducement to influence the results of three football matches".
Both men were found guilty and jailed five months each. They also received a one-year worldwide ban from playing football.
Pfannenstiel, who served 101 days of his sentence, had testified that freelance golf instructor Sivakumar Madasamy had approached him at a petrol station.
Court documents stated that Sivakumar had placed bets on behalf of the two foreign players.
He was jailed for four weeks.
The Straits Times reported in January 2001 that Pfannenstiel, then 27, had agreed to "accept $5,000, $7,000 and $6,000 to be raised by a man and bet on his behalf in return for fixing the matches he played in".
In 1997, Pfannenstiel joined Sembawang Rangers as the club's first foreign player.
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This article was first published in The New Paper.
