sábado, 30 de abril de 2022

Boris Becker is JAILED for 2½ years: Judge slams tennis ace for showing 'no remorse' as she jails him for £700,000 bankruptcy fraud... before 'humiliated' star's girlfriend blows him a kiss as he's taken to the cells

 



Boris Becker is JAILED for 2½ years: Judge slams tennis ace for showing 'no remorse' as she jails him for £700,000 bankruptcy fraud... before 'humiliated' star's girlfriend blows him a kiss as he's taken to the cells

 

Three-time Wimbledon champion and ex-world number one tennis star was declared bankrupt in 2017

Becker, 54, owed creditors almost £50million over an unpaid loan of £3million on his estate in Mallorca

Transferred around £390,000 from his business account to others, including those of his ex-wife Barbara

BBC commentator found guilty on April 8 of four Insolvency Act offences between June and October 2017

 

By MARK DUELL and JAMES FIELDING and HENRY MARTIN FOR MAILONLINE

PUBLISHED: 15:46 BST, 29 April 2022 | UPDATED: 21:17 BST, 29 April 2022

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-10767757/Boris-Becker-sentencing-Tennis-star-jailed-two-years-bankruptcy-offences.html

 

Three-time Wimbledon champion Boris Becker was today jailed for two years and six months for flouting the terms of his bankruptcy by hiding £2.5million worth of assets and loans to avoid paying his debts.

 

The former world number one tennis player was led to the cells at Southwark Crown Court in London as his girlfriend Lilian De Carvalho Monteiro blew him a kiss, after he was blasted by a judge for showing no remorse.

 

Becker, 54, was declared bankrupt in June 2017, owing creditors almost £50million over an unpaid loan of more than £3million on his estate in Mallorca, Spain. The BBC pundit transferred around £390,000 from his business account to others, including those of his ex-wife Barbara Becker and estranged wife Sharlely 'Lilly' Becker.

 

 

He also failed to declare his share in a £1million property in his home town of Leimen, Germany, hid a bank loan of almost £700,000 - worth £1.1million with interest - and concealed 75,000 shares in a tech firm, valued at £66,000.

 

Becker - who got a two-year suspended sentence for tax evasion and attempted tax evasion worth £1.4million in Germany in 2002 - was found guilty on April 8 of four Insolvency Act offences between June and October 2017.

 

Each count carried a maximum sentence of seven years in prison. This afternoon, Judge Deborah Taylor sentenced the six-time Grand Slam champion to 30 months' imprisonment, of which he will serve at least half.

 

Referring to Becker's previous conviction, the judge said this afternoon: 'You did not heed the warning you were given and the chance you were given by the suspended sentence and that is a significant aggravating factor.'

 

And she told father-of-four Becker: 'I take into account what has been described as your "fall from grace". You have lost your career and reputation and all of your property as a result of your bankruptcy.

 

'You have not shown remorse, acceptance of your guilt and have sought to distance yourself from your offending and your bankruptcy. While I accept your humiliation as part of the proceedings, there has been no humility.'

 

As he was led away, Becker was red-faced and appeared to struggle with his overnight bag. His girlfriend Lilian De Carvalho Monteiro blew him a kiss before he disappeared out of the court to the cells below.

 

Reacting to the news, Becker's friend and fellow ex-tennis star Andrew Castle told LBC today: 'Still reeling from the news this Friday afternoon that Boris Becker - who's a great mate of mine, I've done many Wimbledon finals for him for the BBC, I've sat alongside him, I've played with him, I've practised with him, I've been out with him, I've been drunk with him, he's a good man - he's going to prison for two and a half years. And I'm, look, I'm shocked because it's close to me. I'm sad that his life has come to this and I hope he's able to rebuild on the other side.

 

'If you don't pay your creditors, you pay the price. It's the second time this had happened after what happened in Germany back in 2002. I thought this was a possibility, but I'm surprised and deeply shocked that I won't be working with him at Wimbledon this year and that he's going to go to prison. And I feel sorry for Lilian as well.'

 

And Insolvency Service chief executive Dean Beale added: 'Boris Becker's sentence clearly demonstrates that concealing assets in bankruptcy is a serious offence for which we will prosecute and bring offenders to justice.'

 

Becker had earlier arrived at court with Miss de Carvalho Monteiroa this morning, dressed smartly in a suit and wearing a Wimbledon tie as he walked up the steps and into the building while holding hands with her.

 

He then entered the dock of the court, while his eldest son came into the courtroom carrying a large Puma-branded bag, which the tennis star had previously been seen carrying outside his home.

 

This morning, he was seen carrying a green Puma canvas holdall as he stepped out of his West London home and into a black taxi to head to the court. Earlier in the day, he also went out to buy a bouquet of flowers.

 

Yesterday, Becker spent the day browsing Harrods and visiting an unknown woman in her council flat. The father-of-four was photographed in Knightsbridge, Paddington and Notting Hill.

 

'Humiliated' Boris Becker has 'nothing' to show for 'glittering' career

Tennis legend Boris Becker has been left with nothing to show for his 'glittering' sporting career and will have to rely on charity to survive, his lawyer has said.

 

The three-time Wimbledon Champion, 54, was declared bankrupt in 2017 over a loan from private bank Arbuthnot Latham against his estate in Mallorca.

 

His barrister Jonathan Laidlaw QC said the bank now has the property, which Becker said was worth about 50 million euros (£42 million) at the height of the property market.

 

He said the six-time grand slam champion will lose any interest he has in any other property or asset he has.

 

'This defendant has lost literally everything and he has already paid an extremely heavy price both for the mismanagement of his financial affairs, which of course he has nobody to blame but himself, but also for his offending,' he said.

 

'Boris Becker has literally nothing and there is also nothing to show for what was the most glittering of sporting careers, and that is correctly termed as nothing short of a tragedy.'

 

Mr Laidlaw said Becker, who after retirement coached current world number one Novak Djokovic, worked as a TV sports commentator for broadcasters including the BBC, and acted as a brand ambassador for firms such as Puma, does not have a future.

 

'His fall is not simply a fall from grace but amounts to the most public humiliation for this man,' he said.

 

'The degree of his suffering, and it will continue, is punishment that no other bankrupt in this country is likely to ever experience.

 

'These proceedings have destroyed his career entirely and ruined any further prospect of earning an income. His reputation is in tatters.

 

'He will not be able to find work and will have to rely on the charity of others if he is to survive.'

 

Wearing a grey jacket and a baseball cap, he was spotted taking a taxi to a council estate in Bayswater to visit a woman before emerging 90 minutes later to go shopping in Harrods – where a guard ushered him in through a side entrance. He later walked home clutching the Puma holdall.

 

The six-time Grand Slam winner now faces losing lucrative contracts with TV networks around the world, including his job as a BBC pundit at Wimbledon.

 

On Wednesday, Becker was embraced by his girlfriend as he took a cigarette break during a meeting with documentary maker George Chignell in London.

 

And last weekend, he was pictured with estranged wife Lilly and their 12-year-old boy in south London before the father and son met up with Miss de Carvalho Monteiro.

 

The tennis star, who lived in Monte Carlo and Switzerland before moving to the UK, had previously told the court he had 'expensive lifestyle commitments', including a £22,000-a-month rental house in Wimbledon, South West London.

 

Becker was declared bankrupt on June 21, 2017 over an unpaid loan of more than £3million on his estate in Mallorca. He had been accused of hiding millions of pounds worth of assets, including two Wimbledon trophies, to avoid paying his debts.

 

He claimed he had cooperated with trustees tasked with securing his assets, even offering up his wedding ring, and had acted on expert advice.

 

Today, Rebecca Chalkley, prosecuting, told Southwark Crown Court: 'Looking at the way the case was put and the route to verdict it is the prosecution submission that the jury rejected his case that he did not act dishonestly and must have found that he did'

 

She continued: 'None of the money in count four, the money transferred to third parties, was in sterling £390,000. It is the prosecution case the full amount is recoverable or should be accounted for and not just the 50 per cent that Mr Laidlaw submits.

 

'It is correct the jury has found the defendant didn't know about the prescribed period, or they did conclude that the transfer to the other Boris Becker accounts was not concealments but they did find him guilty on transfer to the third parties which are these payments.

 

'The transfer of all of the payments the jury must have concluded that it was deliberate and dishonest.

 

'Applying the way the case was put, there is a way to see the jury returned the verdicts they did looking at the difference between the prescribed period and the bankrupt period, the third parties and to the separate Boris Becker accounts.'

 

She said the house in Leimen that has yet to be sold is worth £1.53million.

 

Ms Chalkley said: 'The reason the full amount is listed is that he sought to deprive that amount from the estate and at the moment that has not been returned to the creditors.

 

'It will be available yes, but there is a distinction to be drawn from the money lost, and in regards to actual money lost is the £390,000 and what was sought to be lost was the £1.53million.'

 

The life of former world tennis number 1 Boris Becker

 

Boris Franz Becker was born in Leimen, a town in north-west Germany, in 1967.

 

He began playing tennis at a young age with fellow tennis star and future world Number 1 Steffi Graf. Both of the pair are credited with making tennis a popular sport in the country.

 

Becker became a part of the German Tennis Federation in 1978 and turned pro in 1984.

 

A year later he won Wimbledon at the age of 17 after beating Kevin Curren and became a crowd favourite, affectionately nicknamed Boom Boom for his powerful ground strokes.

 

Becker was the only unseeded player and first German to do so at the time, as well as the youngest male to win. The title of the youngest male to win a Grand Slam tournament was later scooped from him by Michael Chang at the French Open four years later.

 

He won Wimbledon again a year later and in 1989, and was a finalist there in 1988, 1990, 1991, and 1995. He also helped his nation win the coveted Davis Cup in 1988 and 1989 and went on to win the Australian Open in 1991 and 1996.

 

Becker was ranked world number one in 1991 following his first Australian Open win.

 

The tennis star announced his retirement following a straight sets quarter final defeat against Pat Rafter in 1999. He went on to become a coach and became head coach for current world number 1 Novak Djokovic for three years from 2013.

 

During his 16-year professional tennis career, Becker was a six-time Grand Slam champion and collected 49 singles titles out of 77 finals.

 

He married Barbara Feltus in 1993 and the couple had two children - a son, Noah, who was born in 1994, and a daughter, Elias, born in 1999.

 

In December 2000 the couple announced they were separating. A year later, Becker was forced to concede that he was the father of Russian model Angela Ermakova's daughter Anna following a High Court battle.

 

In 2002, Becker was convicted for tax evasion and attempted tax evasion in Germany.

 

Seven years later, he announced he was engaged to Dutch model Sharlely 'Lilly' Kerssenberg. She gave birth in 2010 to a son, Amadeus. They announced their separation in 2018.

 

Becker, who has lived in the UK since 2012, continued to make headlines with reports of financial trouble after he was declared bankrupt in 2017.

 

Earlier this month he was convicted of flouting the terms of the bankruptcy.

 

Becker was found guilty of transferring hundreds of thousands of pounds from his business account and failing to declare a property in his home town of Leimen, Germany.

 

The BBC commentator was also convicted of hiding an 825,000 euro (almost £700,000) bank loan and 75,000 shares in a tech firm.

 

The Insolvency Service has confirmed Becker is still an undischarged bankrupt and will stay that way until October 2031.

 

The court was also told today that Becker has 'fallen from grace' and 'will have to rely on the charity of others to survive'.

 

He has suffered 'public humiliation' and has 'no future' following his conviction for hiding assets from the Insolvency Service, his barrister said.

 

He added that his actions were a tragedy, destroying a 'glittering' career and has left him with 'literally nothing'.

 

Mitigating today, Jonathan Laidlaw QC, said: 'I submit, and I hope this is not an exaggeration, Boris Becker has literally nothing and there is nothing to show for what was the most glittering of sporting careers.

 

'That is nothing short of a tragedy. His fall is not simply a fall from grace but amounts to the most public of humiliations for this man.

 

'His degree of suffering is punishment at a level that no other bankrupt in this country is likely to experience. So in terms of the defendant's future, in reality there is not one.

 

'These proceedings have destroyed his career, removed any future prospect of him earning any income and his brand is in tatters. He won't be able to find work and will have to rely on the charity of others if he is to survive.'

 

Earlier the court heard he was in 'desperate financial straits' and chose who to give money to rather than the trustees in charge of his bankruptcy.

 

His lawyer has said that he transferred money to 'settle debts' and 'meet his obligations' to his ex-wife and estranged wife.

 

He also said Becker now has 'nothing' and 'nothing to show for what was the most glittering of sporting careers'.

 

The court heard the original bankruptcy including the British private bank Arbuthnot Latham was £49,181,724. Excluding the bank, it was £40,067,065. What has been realised to date is £3.184million.

 

Mr Laidlaw QC said: 'He was in desperate financial straits and what in essence he has done and this is the basis of his culpability.

 

'He has exercised his own choice to which creditors to pay choosing or preferring to pay monies to dependents allowing than allowing the trustees to choose how that money can be applied.

 

'That is a criminal offence, but...this is a very different basis for sentence than has been contended before.'

 

He added: 'Would those payments out to others necessarily been disallowed by the trustee in bankruptcy?

 

'Against this background plainly the defendant had to continue to support his ex-wife and that would have been consistent with the orders of the court.

 

'He was estranged from his then-wife and furthermore with the consent of the joint trustees he had been allowed to continue to work. Almost all of the money falls into those categories.

 

'I accept the point you make, and hope the court would also accept, that it is preference the defendant is exercising which is plainly not something he should have done but those payments may have been approved by the trustee in bankruptcy.

 

'We're not concerned about the money being spent on a lavish lifestyle or gambling or something like that.'

 

Mr Laidlaw also invited the judge to reject that Becker got a mortgage on a house in order to stop creditors from seizing it.

 

He said: 'I invite you to reject in round terms the loan, the mortgage, was sought with bankruptcy in mind. That is a submission that must fail.

 

'The evidence was the loan was granted on 27 March. That was a month before the petition was presented and two months before he was served with the petition on 28 May. It couldn't have been a device that the prosecution is suggesting.'

 

The three-time Wimbledon champion, 54, was photographed in Knightsbridge, Paddington and Notting Hill yesterday ahead of today's sentencing for a £2.5million bankruptcy scam.

 

Wearing a grey jacket and a baseball cap, he was spotted taking a taxi to a council estate in Bayswater, west London, to visit a woman before emerging 90 minutes later to go shopping in Harrods – where a guard ushered him in through a side entrance.

 

On Wednesday, Becker was embraced by his girlfriend as he took a cigarette break during a meeting with documentary maker George Chignell in London.

 

Last weekend, he was pictured with estranged wife Lilly and their 12-year-old boy in south London before the father and son met up with his current girlfriend, Lilian de Carvalho Monteiro.

 

Mr Laidlaw said: 'It is about 200,000 euros and not at the much higher figure. Most importantly however is about the court's assessment of liability. It is the court's judgement is that has these had been declared of the intention of the money it is likely this would have been permitted.'

 

He continued: 'There is no evidence of premeditation of the defendant to commit Insolvency Act offences. It is in the evidence of the acquittals and it is clear that he never contemplated to be made bankrupt at all.

 

'The reality is the defendant's finances were a mess. They were chaotic. It is not until mid-July, a month or so into the bankruptcy, that count 4 occurred.

 

'There is no evidence of preparation of planning. He told his advisors about Schilling, the loan, and the shares, and if they had been included in the PIQB [preliminary information questionnaire for bankruptcy] he would not have found himself in this court.'

 

Mr Laidlaw continued: 'He is not a defendant who brought about his bankruptcy with the intention of committing fraud. He was desperately seeking, however unrealistic he may have been, to avoid such event and he hoped to avoid such event.

 

'The culpability in our submission comes to this is he made choices to which debts to pay rather than allowing the joint trustees to make that decision.'

 

He concluded his mitigation by saying: 'The defendant has lost literally everything. He has already paid an extremely heavy price in the mismanagement of his affairs in which he has no one to blame but himself.

 

He added: 'Despite [Arbuthnot Latham] having been satisfied the defendant still finds himself subject to what is essentially an indefinite bankruptcy order.

 

'He has already suffered a heavy price due to the mismanagement of his affairs but also due to this offending. He has or will lose any interest in any other property or asset he has.'

 

Becker had told jurors his $50million (about £38 million) career earnings were swallowed up by an expensive divorce to his first wife Barbara Becker, child maintenance payments and 'expensive lifestyle commitments'.

 

The German national, who has lived in the UK since 2012, said he was 'shocked' and 'embarrassed' when he was declared bankrupt on June 21 2017 over an unpaid loan of more than £3million on his estate in Mallorca.

 

He claimed he had co-operated with trustees tasked with securing his assets, even offering up his wedding ring, and relied on the advisers who managed his life.

 

However, Becker, who was supported in court by his partner Lilian de Carvalho Monteiro and eldest son, was found guilty of four charges.

 

The court heard Becker received 1.13 million euros (about £950,000) from the sale of a Mercedes car dealership he owned in Germany, which was paid into a business account used as a 'piggy bank' for his personal expenses.

 

Becker was found guilty of transferring 427,00 euros (£356,000) to nine recipients, including the accounts of his ex-wife Barbara and estranged wife Sharlely 'Lilly' Becker, the mother of his fourth child.

 

He was further convicted of failing to declare a property in his home town of Leimen, hiding an 825,000 euro (almost £700,000) bank loan on the house as well as 75,000 shares in tech firm Breaking Data Corp.

 

Becker's mother Elvira Becker, 86, begged a judge not to send her son to jail, saying earlier this month that he is 'a decent boy overall', adding: 'I hope my son doesn't have to go to prison.'

 

The German national, who has lived in the UK since 2012, claimed he had co-operated with trustees tasked with securing his assets, even offering up his wedding ring, and relied on the advisers who managed his life.

 

However, Becker, who was supported in court by his partner Ms de Carvalho Monteiro and eldest son, was found guilty of four charges under the Insolvency Act by a jury at Southwark Crown Court on April 8.

 

They include removal of property, two counts of failing to disclose estate and concealing debt.

 

Judge Deborah Taylor had released Becker on conditional bail ahead of sentencing today.

 

The jury heard Becker received £950,000 from the sale of a Mercedes car dealership he owned in Germany, which was paid into a business account.

 

Prosecutor Rebecca Chalkley said he used the account as a 'piggy bank' for personal expenses, including £7,600 on children's school fees, almost £1,000 at Harrods, and payments made to Ralph Lauren, Porsche, Ocado and a Chelsea children's club.

 

He was found guilty of transferring £356,000 to nine recipients, including the accounts of his ex-wife Barbara and estranged wife Sharlely 'Lilly' Becker, the mother of his fourth child.

 

Becker also paid £40,000 for an ankle operation at a private clinic and spent £5,000 at a luxury golf resort in China, the court heard.

 

He was convicted of failing to declare a property in his home town of Leimen, hiding an £700,000 bank loan on the house as well as 75,000 shares in tech firm Breaking Data Corp.

 

The 54-year-old commentator was declared bankrupt in June 2017 after borrowing around £3.5 million from private bank Arbuthnot Latham for this property in Mallorca

 

Becker was cleared of all other charges including failing to hand over nine tennis trophies including those won at the 1985 and 1989 Wimbledon tournament, the 1991 and 1996 Australian Open and the 1992 Olympics. He could face a maximum seven years in jail

 

But Becker was acquitted of a further 20 charges, including nine counts of failing to hand over trophies and medals from his tennis career.

 

He told jurors he did not know the whereabouts of the memorabilia, including two of his three Wimbledon men's singles trophies, including the 1985 title that catapulted him to stardom, aged 17.

 

The other prizes were his 1992 Olympic gold medal, Australian Open trophies from 1991 and 1996, the President's Cup from 1985 and 1989, his 1989 Davis Cup trophy and a Davis Cup gold coin which he won in 1988.

 

Becker was cleared of failing to declare a second German property, as well as his interest in the £2.5 million Chelsea flat occupied by his daughter Anna Ermakova, who was conceived during Becker's infamous sexual encounter with waitress Angela Ermakova at London restaurant Nobu in 1999.

 

Giving evidence, he said he earned a 'vast amount' of money during his career, paying cash for a family home in Munich, a property in Miami, Florida, and the estate in Mallorca, which was worth about 50 million euros at the height of the property market.

 

He was also convicted of trying to conceal the ownership of his £1.8million villa (pictured) 'Im Schilling' in his native Leimen, Germany, as well as his ownership of 75,000 Data Corp shares

 

A court artist's sketch of Boris Becker (far right) in the witness box being questioned by his barrister Jonathan Laidlaw QC (left). His partner Lilian de Carvalho Monteiroover can be seen in the foreground, and prosecutor Rebecca Chalkley on the left

 

But Becker, who went on to coach current world number one tennis player Novak Djokovic, work as a TV sports commentator and act as a brand ambassador for firms including Puma, said his income 'reduced dramatically' following his retirement in 1999.

 

He said he was involved in an 'expensive divorce' with ex-wife Barbara in 2001, involving high maintenance payments to their two sons, and had to support his daughter Anna and her mother, in a deal which included the Chelsea flat.

 

Becker, who was resident in Monte Carlo and Switzerland before moving to the UK, said he had 'expensive lifestyle commitments,' including his £22,000-a-month rented house in Wimbledon, south-west London.

 

He also owed the Swiss authorities five million francs (about £4 million) and separately just under one million euros (more than £800,000) in liabilities over a conviction for tax evasion and attempted tax evasion in Germany in 2002.

 

The court heard Becker's bankruptcy resulted from a £3.85 million loan from private bank Arbuthnot Latham in 2013, and £1.2million, with a 25 per cent interest rate, borrowed from British businessman John Caudwell, who founded Phones 4u, the following year.

 

He said bad publicity had damaged 'brand Becker', meaning he struggled to make enough money to pay off his debts, while his QC Jonathan Laidlaw said at the time of his bankruptcy Becker was too 'trusting and reliant' on his advisers.

 

The rise and fall of a tennis legend: How Boris Becker went from Wimbledon teen sensation, to conceiving a child in a Mayfair restaurant, bankruptcy and facing seven years in prison

 

Few spots stars have ever hit the height of Boris Becker's tennis careers - and none as young as the German ace.

 

Born in Leimen, West Germany, in 1967, Becker, the son of an architect father and a Czech immigrant mother, was thrust into the world of tennis from a young age.

 

His father founded a tennis centre in the town, where Becker honed his skills early on.

 

By the age of 10, in 1977, he was a member of the junior team of the Baden Tennis Association.

 

He went on to win the South German championship and the first German Youth Tennis Tournament.

 

After winning funding for training from the German Tennis Federation, he turned professional at 16 in 1984, winning the Tennis World Young Masters at the NEC in Birmingham in 1985, before claiming victory at Queens in June.

 

In July 1985, aged 17, he entered Wimbledon as an unseeded player and took the tournament by storm, beating Kevin Curren by four sets in the final

 

Two weeks later, in July, aged 17, he entered Wimbledon as an unseeded player and took the tournament by storm, beating Kevin Curren by four sets in the final.

 

At just 17 years and 228 days old he became the youngest men's singles champion at SW19 - and immediately became a household name.

 

The following year he defend his title, beating then world number one Ivan Lendl to secure back-to-back Wimbledon titles.

 

He appeared in 77 finals and won 49 singles titles during his 16 years as a tennis pro.

 

But by 1993, facing criticism over his marriage to wife Barbara and tax problems with the German government, had caused Becker to slide into a severe mid-career decline.

 

In 1997, Becker lost to Sampras in the quarterfinals at Wimbledon. After that match, he vowed that he would never play at Wimbledon again.

 

However he returned one more time to the prestigious west London tennis club, in 1999, this time losing in the fourth round to Patrick Rafter.

 

Off the court, his personal troubles continued. He had to pay £2.4million after he fathered a daughter, named Anna, with a Russian model while married to wife Barbara.

 

That incident took place after he crashed out of Wimbledon to Rafter in 1999 and decided to retire from the sport, aged 31.

 

Becker, in his 2003 autobiography, Stay A Moment Longer, revealed how he 'cried my eyes out' and felt the need to go out for a few beers with friends.

 

However his then wife Barbara, seven months' pregnant with their second son, wanted him to stay at their hotel with her.

 

But by 1993, facing criticism over his marriage to wife Barbara and tax problems with the German government, had caused Becker to slide into a severe mid-career decline

 

'She couldn't and wouldn't understand that she suddenly wasn't first in my priorities,' said Becker.

 

'I said, 'Just once more with the lads, Barbara, just once more to say farewell and then it's only you'. That didn't work. We rowed for two whole hours. Suddenly she was in pain and decided to check into hospital.;

 

Becker said he told his wife to call him if the baby was really on the way, then hit the town.

 

By 11pm he was at the bar in Mayfair's Nobu and spotted Russian model Angela Ermakowa. The pair had sex on the staircase in the London outpost.

 

The following February his secretary handed him a fax in his Munich office. It read: 'Dear Herr Becker, We met in Nobu in London. The result of that meeting is now eight months old.'

 

He later split from his first wife Barbara Feltus, a divorce which is estimated to have cost him more than £15million, as well as their home in Miami.

 

Becker found a new post-tennis purpose soon after, joining the BBC for its annual coverage of Wimbledon - to great success.

 

But his personal problems continued. He had a short engagement to Alessandra Meyer-Wölden in 2008, before announcing that he and Dutch model Sharlely 'Lilly' Kerssenberg would marry in 2009.

 

After nine years of marriage, and a child, Becker's fourth, the pair split in 2018.

 

A year earlier, Becker had been declared bankrupt in June 2017 over an unpaid loan of more than £3million on his estate in Mallorca, Spain.

 

His former business partner, Hans-Dieter Cleven, also claimed that the former tennis ace owed him more than £30million - though the case that was rejected by a Swiss court.

 

Now Becker faces another bump in the road - perhaps the most serious yet - after being found guilty of four counts relating to the Insolvency Act earlier this month.

 

He faces up to seven years in prison - with his freedom now left hanging in the balance ahead of his sentencing tomorrow.

 

Full sentencing remarks by judge in Boris Becker case 

Sentencing Remarks

 

Her Honour Judge Deborah Taylor

 

Recorder of Westminster

 

R v Boris Becker

 

1. Boris Becker, you were found guilty after trial of four offences under the Insolvency Act 1986. All of these offences arise from your actions after a Bankruptcy Order was made on 21 June 2018 following a creditors bankruptcy petition presented to the High Court by Arbuthnot Latham & Co. a private bank. You were acquitted of 20 other offences, including all charges relating to your conduct prior to the Bankruptcy Order being made.

 

Background

 

2. Arbuthnot Latham lent you money in connection with development of The Finca, a Spanish property that you owned in Mallorca. On 27 July 2016, after protracted attempts by you and various sets of advisers to negotiate a settlement or to raise money elsewhere to pay the debt, a Statutory Demand was issued by the bank for the outstanding sum. You contested those proceedings. On 30th August 2016, you submitted a statement in opposition to the Statutory Demand. On 12th April 2017 your application to set aside the Statutory Demand was dismissed, and leave was granted for Arbuthnot Latham to present a petition . On 28th April 2017 the Bankruptcy Petition was presented to the High Court for £3,348,582.57. Your application of 16 June 2017 resisting the order was dismissed and on 21 June 2017 the petition was heard at the High Court and the Bankruptcy Order was made.

 

Relevant evidence

 

3. On your own evidence at trial you had not at any stage before 21 June 2017 expected that the Bankruptcy order would be made. That was your position in the defence of the bankruptcy proceedings. Despite the failure of the attempts to contest the proceedings, your evidence was that you thought more time would be given for a “White Knight” to assist you, or for you to raise money which would enable The Finca to be sold at a proper market value such as would enable your debts to be paid off.

 

4. Nonetheless, you were informed by your acting lawyers that the Bankruptcy order had been made on 21 June. You then immediately dispensed with their services, and over the next few days gathered around you a new team, firstly on 23rd a trusted team of friends and advisors, and then on 26 June, a specialist insolvency team . On 22 June, you were sent a bundle of standard insolvency material including the PIQB – the insolvency booklet setting out your assets - and the NTB/1 and NTB/2 Forms which contained explanatory notes setting out your obligations. You accept that those documents reached you, but your evidence was that initially you did not open them, but took the envelope to the insolvency practitioners on 26 June where the contents were discussed. Your focus was on an annulment of the Bankruptcy Order. Thereafter, the PIQB was filled in, not by you and never signed by you, and sent on 7 July 2017 to the Official Receiver by one of your advisers, on your evidence, without your consent.

 

Counts 10, 13, and 14: Failing to disclose properties and assets

 

5. Any deficiencies in the PIQB document and discrepancies between what you had told them, and what was in the document provided to the Official Receiver were therefore said to be the responsibility of your advisers or as a result of undue reliance on them. Similarly, any failure thereafter, to disclose the assets which are the subject of Counts 10, 13 and 14 of which you have been convicted, was as a result of a belief your advisers had disclosed these assets, and of leaving that disclosure to them, or as a result of their advice or interventions in interviews.

 

6. In relation to Count 10, the failure to disclose Im Schilling , a property you owned in Leimen, and Count 13 , failure to disclose a loan of E825,000 from the Bank of Alpinum in Lichtenstein secured by a land charge on Im Schilling, you relied on an email from your adviser to the Trustee dated 18 September 2017, as evidencing that you had informed the adviser of your ownership of Im Schilling and that there was a mortgage on the property. In relation to Count 14, failure to disclosre ownership of 75,057 shares in Breaking Data Corp, you also gave evidence that you ahd disclosed this to your advisers. In all instances, you said that you coud not understand why the ownership of these assets had not been disclosed to the Trustee.

 

7. Your case on all of these counts was, as a result, that firstly that the prosecution had not proved that you had not, to the best of your knowledge and belief disclosed ownership to the Official Receiver or Trustee, and secondly, innocent intention in that you had no intent to defraud or to conceal the state of your affairs.

 

Count 4. Removal of Property contrary to sections 354(20 and 350(6) of the Insolvency Act.

 

8. You were convicted of this offence which involved the removal of sums of money by payments made to others on dates between 23 June and 28 September 2017 from the BBPOL Euro Metro Bank Account, a company account which you used for both business and personal purposes. The money in this account was part of the second tranche of proceeds of sale of Mercedes Car Dealerships which had been withheld and then released by the German Tax Authorities. You were acquitted of Counts 1 and 2, concealing the proceeds of that sale in the BBPOL account both before and after the Bankruptcy Order was made, and Count 3 Removal of property by payment made to others before the Bankruptcy Order was made. You were also acquitted of other counts 5-9 of concealing property by transfers both before and after the Bankruptcy order to other accounts operated by you.

 

9. It was agreed in relation to Count 4 that the moneys had been removed from the account by you, and whilst it was not accepted that the sums were moneys which should have been delivered up to the Trustee, that was not substantially disputed. Your defence in relation to this count was, as with all counts, that of innocent intention, that you had no intent to defraud or conceal the state of your affairs.

 

Basis of sentence

 

Count 4.

 

10. The clear indication from the Jury’s verdicts is that they drew a distinction between offences alleging concealment, of which they acquitted you, and offences of removal. In respect of the latter, there was a further distinction clear from the verdicts between offences prior to the Bankruptcy notice, and those after. This offence was both an offence of removal of assets and after the Bankruptcy order. The jury concluded by their verdicts that you were unable to discharge the burden of proving that it was more likely than not that you had no intention to defraud or conceal in making these payments. The effect of that is that they must have concluded that it was more likely than not that you did have such an intention.

 

11. I have considered the submissions made on your behalf that the Court should conclude that there was a period after the Bankruptcy order during which the payments made in Count 4 should be discounted as being before you realised that you should not be making any more transfers. Some emphasis was placed an the exchange with Mr Bint in the interview of the 11 July 2017 about the use you could make of companies and company accounts. Not only was that after several of the payments at the beginning of the period covered by this Count, but also at a time when Mr Bint was unaware of the personal use you were making of the company account.

 

12. I reject the submission that there is any period within Count 4 in which payments made to others should not be considered as subject to the verdict of the Jury to which I have referred, the fact that a substantial sum was paid to Mr.Moghadem and then his account used as a surrogate account is an additional factual indication of the manner in which you were treating this money.

 

13. In the circumstances I take into account in respect of this count that removal was conducted over a period of 3 months and that the whole sum paid out has been lost to the bankruptcy estate, to the detriment of your creditors, other than those you chose to pay. The full amount of €426,930.90 was lost. At today’s exchange rate that is approximately £390,000.

 

Counts 10, 13 and 14:

 

14. The Jury convicted you of these counts, and were therefore satisfied that you owned these assets and that they were assets which should have been disclosed. They rejected the defence of innocent intention.

 

15. Whilst I accept that you had advisers upon whom you relied, it is clear from the evidence that you knew that the obligation was on you, not them, to disclose the assets to the Official Receiver and Trustee. What was apparent from the evidence was that increasingly you left communication with the Trustees to others, showing little or no interest in engaging yourself, using them as a shield against the requests from the trustees for information and compliance.

 

16. In relation to Count 10, irrespective of the lack of disclosure in the PIQB, you were told at the 13 September 2017 meeting that if you had a property, say in France, that the Trustee had not asked about, it was incumbent upon you to say, either, that you own the property, or it's owned in trust for these reasons. The fact that , in relation to Im Schilling you had doubts about your mother’s interests did not prevent you from raising this with the Trustee. You were able and willing to accept ownership and use it to raise money or for purposes advantageous to you, as is clear from the Habke/Cleven email in August 2008, the Ennes email in January 2017 and the Jensen email in March 2017.

 

17. I accept that the failure to disclose was of relatively short duration, being between June 21 2017 and your letter on 27 September 2017 when you provided the address of the Im Schilling property, and accepted co- ownership at least.

 

18. As far as this Count is concerned the property has not yet been sold, but is available to the estate. The latest valuation is £1,053,720.

 

Count 13 Bank Alpinum

 

19. In this respect I accept the submissions that this loan was not taken out in a plan ahead of bankruptcy. The loan was applied for, received and mostly spent prior to the Bankruptcy notice. Two payments were however, made after the Notice in July 2017.

 

20. The seriousness of this offence lies in the concealment. I accept on the evidence that your advisers may well have known about it, but it was again your duty to disclose it and there were ample opportunities to do so, in particular as a result of the extensive correspondence about the land charge.

 

21. None of the loan was recovered. Therefore, the debt of the full amount €825,000 is lost from the estate.

 

Count 14 the Breaking Data Shares

 

22. The same considerations apply to this offence. The Jury rejected your defence of innocent intention. The shares were sold £9,256 .25. Whilst the Prosecution say that this was for less than the estimated sale price, there is no substantial evidence that this was not a fair market price .

 

Approach to Sentence

 

23. There are no Guidelines for Insolvency Act offences. Whilst I have been referred to decisions in other cases, including from the Court of Appeal I do not find them of great assistance as all these cases are fact specific . Nonetheless, the principles to be gained from these cases are to emphasis the importance of adherence to the Insolvency regime and that in general cases involving failure to do so will be the subject of a custodial sentence.

 

24. In the absence of a specific Guidleins, the starting point is, the Sentencing Council’s General Guideline Overarching Principles. In this respect I take into account the statutory maximum, sentencing judgements of the Court of Appeal (Criminal Division) for the offence, and definitive sentencing guidelines for analogous offences. In this case some assistance can be gained from the Bribery Fraud and Money Laundering Guideline, although care must be taken as the offences are different in significant respects.

 

25. I start by assessing the seriousness of the offences. In relation to all counts I consider culpability and the harm. I have set out the basis upon which I sentence. In relation to Count 4 these were payments made knowing of the bankruptcy order. Whilst it has been suggested that your actions were merely to make preferential creditors of those you paid, who may well have been paid in any event had the Trustee been given the information, that was not a choice they were given. This applies for example in relation to the payment made to your former wife and second wife from whom you were separate. That fails to take into account that it was not your choice to make and the result is that a large sum, £390,000 has been lost to the estate permanently. This would be category 2 in the Fraud Guidelines.

 

26. As far as Counts 10, 13 and 14 are concerned, I assess the culpability as medium and both Count 10 and 13 in Category 1 on value, although there are other features of this offending which indicate that this is not the only factor, as the assets have remained within the estate.

 

27. I therefore take as a starting point, in relation to Count 4, a period of 2 ½ years imprisonment, which is for example in line with the category in the False Accounting Guideline. Whilst the sums are greater, the offences in Counts 10, 13 and 14 have not resulted in the loss to the estate, and in relation to those offences I take a starting point of 18 months for each count.

 

28. In terms of aggravating features , I do not consider there was significant planning. I accept that you were in chaos - having learned of the bankruptcy order, you did what you could to pay those closest to you, which was not a decision which was sophisticated or planned, The effect on others is taken into account in the offending.

 

29. I also take into account the previous conviction for tax evasion which I consider to be a similar offence, although some time ago, it is of significance in this case that you did not heed the warning you were given and the suspended sentence which was imposed, that is a significant aggravating feature.

 

30. In mitigation I take into account what has been described as your fall from grace. You have lost your career, reputation and all of your property as a result of your bankruptcy. I have taken into account the letters from your family and your reference for charitable works. However, you have shown no remorse or acceptance of your guilt, and have sought to distance yourself from the offending in your bankruptcy. Whilst I accept the humiliation you have felt as a result of these proceedings, there has been no humility.

 

31. Overall, having regard to all the features of this case, and having regard to the aggravating and mitigating features, and taking into account totality, I impose the minimum sentence commensurate with your offending .

 

32. In relation to Count 4 the sentence will be one of 2 years 6 months I impose concurrent sentences of 18 months in relation to Counts 10,13 and 14. The total sentence is therefore one of 2 years 6 months, The effect of that is that you will serve half the sentence before being released from custody subject to licence conditions. If you fail to comply with your licence conditions you may be recalled to serve the remainder of the sentence in addition to any sentence for any further offending,

 

33. I make no Directors Disqualification order having regard to the fact that you remain an undischarged bankrupt and therefore are unable to be a director. I make no order for confiscation having regard to the fact that the bankruptcy is continuing. I make no order for Prosecution Costs.

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