Boris Becker guilty of four charges under Insolvency Acton April 8, 2022 at 2:23 pm

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The three-time Wimbledon champion was declared bankrupt in 2017 over an unpaid loan of more than £3m.

Boris Becker

Image source, Getty Images

Ex-tennis star Boris Becker has been found guilty of four charges under the Insolvency Act relating to his 2017 bankruptcy.

The former world number one was accused of hiding millions of pounds worth of assets to avoid paying his debts.

He was declared bankrupt in June 2017 over an unpaid loan of more than £3m on his estate in Mallorca, Spain.

Becker, 54, was acquitted of a further 20 charges at London’s Southwark Crown Court on Friday.

He was cleared of nine counts of failing to hand over trophies and medals from his tennis career, including two Wimbledon men’s singles trophies.

The six-time Grand Slam champion told reporters outside court he would not be commenting on the verdict.

The four charges he was found guilty of include removal of property, two counts of failing to disclose estate and concealing €825,000 of debt. He could face a jail sentence carrying a maximum term of seven years for each count.

He was cleared of failing to declare a second German property, as well as his interest in the £2.5m Chelsea flat occupied by his daughter.

Becker, a German national who has lived in the UK since 2012, said he had co-operated with those tasked with securing his assets, including offering up his wedding ring.

During the trial, Becker said he earned a “vast amount” in his career, paying in cash for several properties, but his income “reduced dramatically” following his retirement in 1999.

His barrister, Jonathan Laidlaw QC, said at the time of Becker’s bankruptcy he was too “trusting and reliant” on his advisers.

At the start of the trial, Judge Deborah Taylor instructed the jury of 11 men and one woman to ignore Becker’s celebrity.

“You must treat him in exactly the same way you would treat someone you have not heard of and is not in the public eye,” she said.

Becker has been bailed ahead of a sentencing hearing on 29 April.

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