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Moreni freed by cops, sacked by Cofidis
Disgraced Cofidis rider Cristian Moreni of Italy was released from police custody on Thursday after being detained since Wednesday, the Pau county prosecutor announced on Thursday.
Moreni was arrested in the southwestern French town of Pau for questioning after the Italian failed a doping control on July 19, which subsequently led to the rider and his team withdrawing from the Tour de France.
His team sacked him on Thursday.
"Moreni has been released as from 1530 local time," said Erick Maurel, "The first wave of hearings is over."
The Italian rider, who declined a second analysis after testing positive for high levels of testosterone, is not the subject of a specific criminal examination.
"The investigations will continue though, with new hearings, and scientific evaluations will be carried out,” Maurel said.
The Pau prosecutor added that the investigation will look into "violations of the law concerning poisonous substances."
However, the prosecutor refused to comment on the origins of the banned products nor the type of products used before "scientific evaluations" had been done.
