RED-FLAGGED

Ex-Formula One Chief Charged With Hiding Nearly Half a Billion Dollars

The 91-year-old faces criminal prosecution after being accused of hiding £400 million of foreign assets from U.K. tax authorities.

The former Formula One boss Bernie Ecclestone faces criminal prosecution for fraud after being accused of hiding almost half a billion dollars worth of overseas assets from the British taxman. Andrew Penhale, head of fraud investigations for the Crown Prosecution Service, said the 91-year-old faced a charge of “fraud by false representation in respect of his failure to declare to HMRC the existence of assets held overseas believed to be worth in excess of £400 million ($476 million).” The charge follows a “complex and worldwide” investigation by Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs (HMRC)—the British tax office. Ecclestone, whose wealth is put at more than $4 billion by Forbes, made his money after pioneering the sale of TV rights in motorsport. In 2014, Ecclestone paid a $100 million settlement to end a bribery case in a German court that had revolved around a family trust owned by Ecclestone’s ex-wife.