German tennis star Boris Becker freed from UK prison, to be deported
Three-time Wimbledon champion Boris Becker has been freed from prison after serving just eight months of his sentence and now faces deportation from Britain. The three-time Wimbledon champion was jailed for two-and-a-half years in April for hiding £2.5 million ($2.9 million) of assets and loans to avoid paying his debts.
- Sports
- Reuters
- Published Date: 02:57 | 15 December 2022
- Modified Date: 02:57 | 15 December 2022
German tennis star Boris Becker, 55, has been freed from a British prison and will be deported from the country, PA Media reported on Thursday.
Britain's Ministry of Justice confirmed he had been released. The interior ministry did not immediately respond to comment when asked about his deportation.
In April, Becker, a six-times Grand Slam champion, was jailed for two years and six months by a London court for hiding hundreds of thousands of pounds of assets after he was declared bankrupt.
He had previously been convicted of tax evasion in Germany in 2002, for which he received a suspended prison sentence.
The former tennis great had won his first Wimbledon final in 1985 aged 17 becoming the youngest and first unseeded player to claim the men's singles title. He went on to two win more Wimbledon titles.
Becker had denied all the charges in relation to the London court proceedings, saying he had cooperated with the bankruptcy proceedings - even offering up his wedding ring - and had relied on his advisers.