MARSEILLE, France -- Gilbert Sau, the agent who brokered the transfers of several Olympique Marseille players, including Arthur Moses, was charged with fraud and forgery by magistrates investigating the finances of the former European champions, police said.

Investigating magistrates Laure Roche and Franck Landou suspect widespread fraud around transfers made to and from Marseille between 1997 and 1999.

Thirty two transfers are being probed and financial investigators are looking especially at possible tax fraud in negotiations over the transfers of Italian Fabrizio Ravanelli, Brazil's Edson Da Silva and Ghana's Arthur Moses.

Sau, who has been released on bail, was one of the main negotiators in these transfers.

Magistrates also want to find out why Sau received money in the transfers of Ivory Coast's Ibrahima Bakayoko and French defender Sebastien Perez to Marseille even though he had no official role in the transactions.

"This is only the tip of the iceberg," a police source said. "Police are slowly discovering a fraud which could involve several million euros."