Three-time Wimbledon champion Boris Becker has been sentenced to two years and six months in prison for violating the conditions of his bankruptcy by concealing property.
The 54-year-old remained silent while convicted in Southwark Crown court, glancing at his son Noah and partner Lillian de Carvalho Monteiro, who kissed him as they led him to the cells below.
In a request for a suspended sentence, Becker’s lawyer claims that the sports star has already “lost literally everything.” But Judge Deborah Taylor said that despite the humiliation Becker may have felt, he “did not show humility” during the proceedings.
Becker will serve half of his sentence before being considered released, Judge Taylor said.
He was found guilty of four charges under the Bankruptcy Act earlier this month, including confiscation of property, two charges of non-disclosure of property and evasion of debt.
Becker heard the transfer of € 427,000 (£ 356,000) to nine recipients, including the accounts of his ex-wife Barbara Becker and estranged wife Charlie “Lily” Becker, the mother of his fourth child.
Becker also paid 48,000 euros (40,000 British pounds) for an ankle surgery at a private clinic and spent 6,000 euros (5,000 British pounds) at a luxury golf resort in China, the court heard.
He was also convicted of not declaring property in his hometown of Lyman and of evading a bank loan of almost £ 700,000 and 75,000 shares in technology firm Breaking Data Corp.
The German citizen, who has lived in the United Kingdom since 2012, was legally obliged to declare significant assets in the event of bankruptcy.
The six-time Grand Slam champion said he was “shocked” and “embarrassed” when he was declared bankrupt on June 21, 2017 over an unpaid loan of more than £ 3 million at his mansion in Mallorca, Spain.
Becker played at Wimbledon in 1997
(Frank Leonhard / AFP via Getty Images)
He was acquitted on 20 other charges, including nine for failing to hand over trophies and medals from his tennis career.
Becker told jurors he did not know where the souvenirs were, including two of his three Wimbledon singles trophies, one of which he won for the 1985 title, which catapulted him to the 17-year-old star.
Other awards included his 1992 Olympic gold medal, the 1991 and 1996 Australian Open trophies, the 1985 and 1989 President’s Cups, his 1989 Davis Cup trophy and the Davis Cup gold coin. which he won in 1988.
Becker was also released for not declaring a second German property, as well as his interest in the £ 2.5 million Chelsea apartment inhabited by his daughter Anna Ermakova, who was conceived during Becker’s infamous sexual encounter with waitress Angela Ermakova. at London’s Nobu restaurant in 1999.
Becker, after winning the men’s singles title at Wimbledon in 1986
(Bongarts / Getty Images)
Testifying during the trial, he said he earned a “huge sum” during his career by paying in cash for a family home in Munich, a property in Miami, Florida, and a mansion in Mallorca worth about $ 50 million. euros. the height of the real estate market.
But Becker, who continued to coach world number one Novak Djokovic, works as a television commentator and ambassador for the brand for companies including Puma, said his income had “dropped dramatically” since his retirement in 1999.
He said he was involved in an “expensive divorce” from his ex-wife Barbara in 2001, which included high alimony payments for their two sons, and had to support his daughter Anna and her mother in a deal that included an apartment in Chelsea.
Becker, who lived in Monte Carlo and Switzerland before moving to the UK, said he had “expensive lifestyle commitments”, including his £ 22,000-a-month rental house in Wimbledon, south-west London.
Becker arrives at Southwark Crown Court in London with girlfriend Lillian de Carvalho and son Noah Becker
(Peter Cibora / Reuters)
He also owed the Swiss authorities five million francs (about 4 million British pounds) and separately just under 1 million euros (more than 800,000 British pounds) for tax evasion convictions and attempted tax evasion in Germany in 2002. d.
The court heard that Becker’s bankruptcy was the result of a loan of 4.6 million euros from the private bank Arbuthnot Latham in 2013 and 1.2 million British pounds with interest at 25 percent, borrowed from British businessman John Codwell, who founded Phones 4u next year.
He said bad publicity had hurt the Becker brand, which meant he was struggling to make enough money to pay off his debts, while his QC, Jonathan Leidlow, said Becker was too “bankrupt”. trusting and relying ”on his advisers.
Speaking before the verdict – in which Becker wore a tie in Wimbledon’s green and purple colors – Mr Leidlow said his client had “lost literally everything” and had already paid an extremely high price for both poor financial management, which , of course, he has no one to blame but himself, but also his insult. “
He added: “Boris Becker literally has nothing and also nothing to show for what was the most brilliant of his sports careers, and this is rightly called nothing but tragedy.”
Becker has experienced “not just falling away from grace” but “the most public humiliation”, Mr Leidlow said, adding: there will be experience.
“These procedures completely ruined his career and ruined any further prospects for earning income. His reputation is shattered. He will not be able to find a job and will have to rely on the charity of others if he wants to survive. ”
Additional reports from the Press Association
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