ESIC confirm lifting of peacemaker suspension

The esports watchdog has made public its statement regarding the end of sanctions against Luis "⁠peacemaker⁠" Tadeu.

The Esports Integrity Commission (ESIC) has issued its final determination regarding sanctions that were placed on peacemaker ahead of PGL Major Antwerp, stating that the Brazilian coach will have his suspension lifted with immediate effect under an agreement of "time served."

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peacemaker suspension lifted by ESIC

The statement from ESIC confirms an earlier announcement from peacemaker where he revealed his suspension would be lifted in short order after ESIC "accepted the arguments provided" regarding his use of the bug.

Importantly, ESIC clarifies that peacemaker was not absolved of all guilt in using the bug, but rather that the "comprehensive and detailed reply including expert testimony and character evidence" resulted in a lesser charge being issued, and one that was determined to have been of suitable punishment after the 34-year-old was forced to miss the Major.

Part of the provided evidence included testimony from players involved in the match, as well as a comprehensive video breakdown created by Danny "⁠mahone⁠" Hsieh, who was hired as a "neutral expert" by peacemaker to investigate the round in question.

"In determining the sanction, I was mindful that Mr. Tadeu missed the Antwerp Major as a result of PGL and Valve’s decision to suspend him from the event and, consequently, whilst conduct of the kind Mr. Tadeu engaged in should ordinarily result in a higher sanction of more than 22 days suspension, in these particular circumstances, I believe 22 days is appropriate and proportionate," ESIC Commissioner Ian Smith said in a comment.

Crucially, peacemaker's original suspension from the Major was due to his use of the "free-roam variant" of the coaching bug, which allowed those in the bugged state to freely traverse the map, something which ESIC equated to a "cheating offense" — a far steeper infraction than the use of the other variants.

Sanctions for the two other instances of the bug, the "static" or "third-person" variants which were far more widespread, were issued purely based on the mere potential of abuse rather than a determination of an unfair advantage being gained.

In those instances, ESIC state their belief that any participant operating in a professional setting should "immediately rectify any form of game breaking bug or occurrence that should otherwise not have occurred," but distinguished that they were not prosecuted as cheating offenses the same way as the free-roam variant.

With the evidence and arguments provided by peacemaker, ESIC and Mr. Smith were satisfied that the coach did not use the free-roam bug in order to cheat or gain an advantage in the match, and as such, the charge relating to a cheating offense was withdrawn. However, he was still found in violation of remaining in the bugged state for a period without immediately rectifying it, resulting in the same sanction as if he had abused the other two variants of the bug for a single round.

Under a combination of time served and missing out on the Major, peacemaker is no longer sanctioned by the esports watchdog, and will be free to return to stand behind Imperial as they make their next appearance at IEM Dallas from May 30 - June 5.