Massimo Cellino set to be charged by Football League as chiefs lose patience
Mail 10/10/14
CHARLES SALE FOR THE DAILY MAIL
Leeds United owner Massimo Cellino could soon face an unprecedented charge of misconduct from the Football League that may end his troubled stay at Elland Road.
And with Cellino bankrolling the Yorkshire club to the tune of £40million, there would be a danger of Leeds going out of business if the Italian is forced out.
The League’s board, who met this week, have lost patience with the Cellino camp over the long delay in receiving the written reasons why Cellino was found guilty by a Sardinian court of evading import tax duty on his yacht.
The view of the FL directors that is Cellino and his representatives are involved in withholding the six-page judgement by Sardinian judge Dr Sandra Lepore that has reportedly been available for over two months. The next step will be to charge Leeds with misconduct if they don’t receive it.
Dr Lepore’s findings are reported to say Cellino acted with ‘elusive intent’ in evading the £305,000 duty when his boat The Nelie moored in Cagliari.
And that would be enough to deem Cellino to have acted dishonestly, and so fail the League’s owners and directors test.
It is understood neither Cellino nor his London lawyers Mishcon de Reya have a copy of the judge’s report. However Cellino’s Italian legal representative Prof Giovanni Cocco has possession of the document.
But Cocco has no intention of handing it over to the Football League, who he believes influenced the judgement, and has further complicated matters by lodging an appeal against Lepore’s findings.
CHARLES SALE FOR THE DAILY MAIL
Leeds United owner Massimo Cellino could soon face an unprecedented charge of misconduct from the Football League that may end his troubled stay at Elland Road.
And with Cellino bankrolling the Yorkshire club to the tune of £40million, there would be a danger of Leeds going out of business if the Italian is forced out.
The League’s board, who met this week, have lost patience with the Cellino camp over the long delay in receiving the written reasons why Cellino was found guilty by a Sardinian court of evading import tax duty on his yacht.
The view of the FL directors that is Cellino and his representatives are involved in withholding the six-page judgement by Sardinian judge Dr Sandra Lepore that has reportedly been available for over two months. The next step will be to charge Leeds with misconduct if they don’t receive it.
Dr Lepore’s findings are reported to say Cellino acted with ‘elusive intent’ in evading the £305,000 duty when his boat The Nelie moored in Cagliari.
And that would be enough to deem Cellino to have acted dishonestly, and so fail the League’s owners and directors test.
It is understood neither Cellino nor his London lawyers Mishcon de Reya have a copy of the judge’s report. However Cellino’s Italian legal representative Prof Giovanni Cocco has possession of the document.
But Cocco has no intention of handing it over to the Football League, who he believes influenced the judgement, and has further complicated matters by lodging an appeal against Lepore’s findings.
