Former No. 1 Boris Becker Sentenced in Bankruptcy Case

April 29, 2022 | By Long Island Tennis Magazine Staff
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After being found guilty earlier this month of hiding assets in regards to his bankruptcy filing in 2017, German tennis legend Boris Becker was sentenced in a London court on Friday.

The six-time major champion and former world No. 1 was sentenced to two-and-a-half years by a jury in London’s Southwark Crown Court on Friday for transferring hundreds of thousands of pounds from his business account to other accounts after filing for bankruptcy.

He was also convicted of failing to disclose a German property he owned, as well as an 825,000 euro bank loan and shares of a tech firm he owned. Becker was acquitted on 20 other counts he was charged with which included failing to hand over awards and trophies from his playing career.

Judge Deborah Taylor referred back to a previous conviction Becker had for tax evasion in Germany back in 2002, telling Becker, according to the BBC:

“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,” she said. “You 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.”

Becker’s lawyer said:

“Boris Becker has literally nothing and there is also nothing to show for was the most glittering of sporting careers, and that is correctly termed as nothing short of a tragedy,” said Jonathan Laidlaw QC. “These proceedings have destroyed his career entirely and ruined any further prospect of earning an income.”

 


Long Island Tennis Magazine Staff
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