Snin
08-05-2014, 12:33 PM
bribery ? now call me :homer: but wtf :rubchin: ?? the world is a basket case imo
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-28656050
A German court has agreed to end the bribery trial of Formula 1 boss Bernie Ecclestone in exchange for a $100m (£60m) payment from him.
Mr Ecclestone's offer was based on an existing provision in German law.
Earlier on Tuesday German prosecutors accepted the offer from the 83-year-old billionaire who dominates motor racing.
He went on trial in April, accused of paying a German banker 33m euros (£26m; $44m) to ensure that a company he favoured could buy a stake in F1.
He denies wrongdoing.
The ruling means he walks free from the district court in Munich and can continue running the sport. It also means Mr Ecclestone is found neither guilty nor innocent.
His personal wealth is put at $4.2bn by Forbes, which ranks him as the 12th richest UK billionaire.
If found guilty he could have faced a 10-year jail term and the end of his decades-long dominance of motor racing.
A BayernLB banker, Gerhard Gribkowsky, was allegedly paid by Mr Ecclestone to ensure the F1 stake was bought by a company that he favoured, so that he would remain in charge of the sport.
Gribkowsky was sentenced to eight and a half years in prison in 2012 for accepting bribes.
Mr Ecclestone says the payment was given to Gribkowsky after the banker threatened to make false claims about the F1 boss's tax status.
Prosecutors said Mr Ecclestone's advanced age and other mitigating circumstances gave grounds to accept the $100m offer.
Legal get-out clause
Under German law defendants can in certain circumstances "buy" termination of a trial.
The legal proviso exists in order to ease the burden on the courts and to deal with cases where reaching a judgment could prove difficult.
An experienced lawyer quoted by the Spiegelonline news website, Franz Bielefeld, said the proviso, known as Paragraph 153a, was not just applicable to commercial trials, but could be invoked throughout the court system.
But it is unusual for the loophole to be invoked mid-trial - more often it is done before a trial starts, Spiegelonline reports. It has been invoked for some driving offences previously.
Germany's former justice minister, Sabine Leutheusser-Schnarrenberger of the Liberal FDP party, criticised use of the loophole in the Ecclestone case, saying it was "not just bad taste - it's really insolent".
She said it allowed rich people to go free, whereas the less well-heeled could face prison.
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City A.M. F1 boss Bernie Ecclestone offers court $100m to end bribery trial 27 mins ago
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Voice of Russia British Formula 1 chief Ecclestone pays $100 million to end bribery trial 59 mins ago
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-28656050
A German court has agreed to end the bribery trial of Formula 1 boss Bernie Ecclestone in exchange for a $100m (£60m) payment from him.
Mr Ecclestone's offer was based on an existing provision in German law.
Earlier on Tuesday German prosecutors accepted the offer from the 83-year-old billionaire who dominates motor racing.
He went on trial in April, accused of paying a German banker 33m euros (£26m; $44m) to ensure that a company he favoured could buy a stake in F1.
He denies wrongdoing.
The ruling means he walks free from the district court in Munich and can continue running the sport. It also means Mr Ecclestone is found neither guilty nor innocent.
His personal wealth is put at $4.2bn by Forbes, which ranks him as the 12th richest UK billionaire.
If found guilty he could have faced a 10-year jail term and the end of his decades-long dominance of motor racing.
A BayernLB banker, Gerhard Gribkowsky, was allegedly paid by Mr Ecclestone to ensure the F1 stake was bought by a company that he favoured, so that he would remain in charge of the sport.
Gribkowsky was sentenced to eight and a half years in prison in 2012 for accepting bribes.
Mr Ecclestone says the payment was given to Gribkowsky after the banker threatened to make false claims about the F1 boss's tax status.
Prosecutors said Mr Ecclestone's advanced age and other mitigating circumstances gave grounds to accept the $100m offer.
Legal get-out clause
Under German law defendants can in certain circumstances "buy" termination of a trial.
The legal proviso exists in order to ease the burden on the courts and to deal with cases where reaching a judgment could prove difficult.
An experienced lawyer quoted by the Spiegelonline news website, Franz Bielefeld, said the proviso, known as Paragraph 153a, was not just applicable to commercial trials, but could be invoked throughout the court system.
But it is unusual for the loophole to be invoked mid-trial - more often it is done before a trial starts, Spiegelonline reports. It has been invoked for some driving offences previously.
Germany's former justice minister, Sabine Leutheusser-Schnarrenberger of the Liberal FDP party, criticised use of the loophole in the Ecclestone case, saying it was "not just bad taste - it's really insolent".
She said it allowed rich people to go free, whereas the less well-heeled could face prison.
Related Stories
Ecclestone 'to settle' bribery case
29 JULY 2014, EUROPE
Q&A: Ecclestone on trial
24 APRIL 2014, FORMULA 1
Profile of Ecclestone
20 FEBRUARY 2014, FORMULA 1
From other news sites
City A.M. F1 boss Bernie Ecclestone offers court $100m to end bribery trial 27 mins ago
NDTV F1 Boss Bernie Ecclestone Offers $100 Million to End Trial: Court 41 mins ago
South China Morning Post* Prosecution accepts US$100m offer by Ecclestone to end bribery trial in Germany 43 mins ago
Voice of Russia British Formula 1 chief Ecclestone pays $100 million to end bribery trial 59 mins ago
Reuters India Formula One boss Ecclestone offers $100 million to end trial - court 1 hr ago
About these results
* May require registration or subscription
Share this page
Share
More Europe stories
RSS
Refugees at a rebel-run hostel in Donetsk city, eastern Ukraine, 4 AugustUkrainian refugee numbers soar
The number of people fleeing the war in eastern Ukraine to other parts of the country has jumped from 2,600 to 102,600 in two months, the UN says.
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Israel pulls troops out of Gaza
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2: F1 boss Ecclestone offers court deal
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6: Boys unearth gold from 2,300 BC
7: Equation 'can predict happiness'
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2: A disabled model in a 'perfect' world Watch
3: Lights turned off to mark WW1 start Watch
4: How Sweden cares for its elderly Watch
5: Councils crackdown on 'laughing gas' Watch
6: Entrepreneur makes £150,000 toll road Watch
7: Osborne: Warsi move 'unnecessary' Watch
8: BBC News Channel Watch
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