{"id":6018,"date":"2014-03-13T16:17:38","date_gmt":"2014-03-13T16:17:38","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/4cd.e16.myftpupload.com\/?p=6018"},"modified":"2014-03-13T16:17:38","modified_gmt":"2014-03-13T16:17:38","slug":"hoeness-found-guilty-in-tax-evasion-trial","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/citifmonline.com\/2014\/03\/hoeness-found-guilty-in-tax-evasion-trial\/","title":{"rendered":"Hoeness found guilty in tax evasion trial"},"content":{"rendered":"
<\/a>Bayern Munich president Uli Hoeness was found guilty Thursday and sentenced to three-and-a-half years in prison for evading millions of euros in tax through an undeclared Swiss bank account.<\/p>\n Hoeness’ lawyers later announced that they plan to launch an appeal to Germany’s Federal Court of Justice. They have seven days in which to do so.<\/p>\n The 62-year-old Hoeness, one of the most powerful figures in German football, was originally charged with not paying 3.5 million euros ($4.85 million) in taxes on money held in a Swiss bank account, but when his trial opened on Monday he admitted avoiding an additional 15 million euros<\/a>.<\/p>\n It subsequently emerged through an examination of documents Hoeness provided to investigators shortly before the trial that he owed 27.2 million euros in total<\/a> — a figure he did not dispute<\/a>.<\/p>\n In closing arguments on Thursday, prosecutor Achim von Engel recommended a five-and-a-half-year jail sentence, saying his confession had fallen short of full disclosure.<\/p>\n Hoeness’ lawyers later announced that they plan to launch an appeal to Germany’s Federal Court of Justice.<\/p>\n “It is decisive how a slightly failed voluntary disclosure is treated,” Hoeness’ lawyer Hanns Feigen said.<\/p>\n The Munich court has upheld the warrant issued against Hoeness, but he remains a free man for now as Judge Ruprt Heindl. For the verdict, the court also took Hoeness’ voluntary disclosure and his previous conduct and career into account.<\/p>\n As a player, Hoeness was part of the West Germany side which won the 1972 European Championship and the World Cup two years later, and was also a member of the Bayern squad which won three consecutive European Cups between 1974 and 1976.<\/p>\n On Tuesday, he had been at Bayern’s Allianz Arena to watch the European champions’ subdued performance in a\u00a01-1\u00a0<\/a>draw\u00a0with Arsenal in the second leg of their Champions League last-16 tie, although that result was enough to see them progress through to the quarterfinals 3-1 on aggregate.<\/p>\n Several prominent figures in German politics had demanded earlier in the week that Hoeness should resign from his position at Bayern, whatever the verdict, and after he was pronounced guilty they were quick to react.<\/p>\n