Why was Boris Becker sentenced to prison?
Tennis legend Boris Becker received a two and a half year sentence in a British court for hiding assets in relation to his 2017 bankruptcy.
Ex-tennis legend Boris Becker has been sentenced to two-and-a-half years in a British jail for hiding £2.5 million ($3.14 million) worth of assets and loans to avoid paying his debts.
He was declared bankrupt in June 2017 over an unpaid loan of more than £3 million ($3.77 million) on his estate in Mallorca, Spain and a London court found him guilty of four charges under the Insolvency Act earlier this month.
Seeing Boris Becker trending on Twitter today brought back memories of when the lifelong Bayern Munich fan won the Wirral International Tennis Trophy in June 1989 and immediately donated his £25,000 prize money to the Hillsborough Disaster Fund. He was just 21 at the time. pic.twitter.com/7GEiu6HghD
— Paul Rogers (@PaulRogers73) April 29, 2022
He was found guilty of transferring hundreds of thousands of pounds from his business account after his bankruptcy, failing to declare a property in Germany, and concealing €825,000 ($870,000) of debt. It was shown that he had transferred large sums of money out of his business account into the account of his ex-wife Barbara.
The 54-year-old tennis star had owed creditors almost £50 million ($62.87 million) and had admitted that his costly divorce in 2001, as well as a lavish lifestyle that saw him renting a house in Wimbledon for £22,000 ($27,660) per month, had wiped out his finances.
“It is nothing short of a tragedy. His fall is not simply a fall from grace, it is the public humiliation of this man. It is a level that no other bankrupt in this country is ever likely to face” https://t.co/37COmh8mh5
— The Times (@thetimes) April 29, 2022
In sentencing Becker, Judge Deborah Taylor said it was “notable you have not shown remorse or acceptance of your guilt”.
She went on to add, “While I accept the humiliation you have felt as a result of these proceedings, you have shown no humility.”
Boris Becker faked bankruptcy & was jailed
— European Unity #FBPE 🇪🇺 🇺🇦 #JohnsonOut #Rejoin (@EuropeanUnity1) April 29, 2022
Boris Johnson conspired to beat up a journalist, unlawfully closed parliament, presided over 175,000 deaths, handed billions in covid contracts to tory donors, broke the law in Downing Street & is still at liberty
Wrong Boris pic.twitter.com/hAXMZh3Wy4
There was no sign of emotion from Becker as he was taken away to begin his sentence.
His lawyer, Jonathan Laidlaw QC, said that the six-time Grand Slam champion “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. These proceedings have destroyed his career entirely and ruined any further prospect of earning an income. His reputation is in tatters.”
Sorry to hear about @TheBorisBecker …fun to work with on @eurosport and always a gentleman… 🙏
— Chris Evert (@ChrissieEvert) April 29, 2022
Becker’s partner, Lilian de Carvalho Monteiro, and his oldest son Noah were in the court to hear the sentencing.