Retired tennis star Boris Becker can be sent to jail for up to seven years after a London court found him guilty of four charges relating to his 2017 bankruptcy. He was convicted of removal of property, failure to disclose assets, and concealment of debt, although he was acquitted on a further 20 charges.
During his career, Becker earned an estimate of USD 50 million from prize money and sponsorship deals. However, his earnings fell off dramatically after retirement. He also had the burden of an expensive divorce from former wife Barbara Becker, which involved high-maintenance partners to their two sons.
In 2017, he was declared bankrupt after some ill-advised business ventures and failure to repay a USD 5 million loan on a property in Mallorca, Spain. Despite his protests of having cooperated fully with bankruptcy trustees, the court found that he had systematically sought to hide assets from them.
The court heard how he diverted he USD 1.6 million he received from the sale of a Mercedes dealership in Germany into a business account, which he used as his own private fund for personal expenses.
He was also found guilty of diverting thousands of pounds to other accounts, including those of former wife Barbara and another estranged partner, Sharlely “Lily” Becker, the mother of his fourth child.
Becker was also convicted of concealing a bank loan worth USD 1.2 million and shares that he owned in a technology company, and also of failing to disclose a property that he owned in Germany.
He told the jurors that he did not know the location of several pieces of silverware. Including his first Wimbledon trophy, which he won when he first burst on to the scene as a 17-year-old in 1985. He went on to win two more Wimbledon titles, the Australian Open twice, and the US Open.
Becker has lived in Britain since 2012. He has been given conditional bail but will return to court on April for sentencing, knowing that he could be facing several years behind bars.