9 months ago
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ANGE POSTECOGLOU insists his Spurs revolution will be unaffected despite supremo Joe Lewis surrendering to US authorities over insider trading charges.
Lewis faces 19 charges of securities fraud and conspiracy after appearing in a Manhattan courthouse.
Tottenham boss Ange Postecoglou insists Joe Lewis’ charges won’t affect the seasonEPAThe billionaire, 86, whose family trust owns Spurs, has been accused of a “brazen” scheme which allegedly saw girlfriends, business assistants, personal pilots and friends net millions of pounds between them.
But Spurs boss Postecoglou said: “It doesn’t affect me in terms of what I’m trying to do. No one’s said anything like that to me.
“Tottenham have already said it’s not a club matter.”
Lewis has been charged with 16 counts of securities fraud — the first 13 of which carry a max of 20 years in prison — plus three counts of conspiracy from 2013 to 2021 when he was Tottenham owner.
Lewis, a Bahamas tax exile, pleaded not guilty to all charges and was released after posting $300million in bail.
He is due back in court on September 5.
His lawyer David Zornow said: “The government has made an egregious error in judgment in charging Mr Lewis, a man of impeccable integrity and prodigious accomplishment.
“Mr Lewis has come to the US voluntarily to answer the ill-conceived charges. We will defend him vigorously in court.”
Londoner Lewis bought a controlling stake in Spurs from Alan Sugar for £22m in 2001.
But he officially ceded control of the club last year, with Bahamian lawyer Bryan Glinton replacing him as a director, according to Companies House.
Lewis’ stake in the club — which he held through his ENIC group alongside chairman Daniel Levy — was formally handed to a family trust last year, too.
Some of his family members remain beneficiaries of the trust. But Prem chiefs will NOT intervene as Lewis gave up his majority stake in the club in October.
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EPAA Tottenham spokesperson said: “This is a legal matter unconnected with the club and, as such, we have no comment.”
However, the scandal could mean Spurs facing a cut-price takeover offer.
City insiders suggest the club is valued in excess of £3.5BILLION.
But, although the club pointed to Lewis’ share disposal nine months ago as proof of his lack of involvement, City insiders believe any would-be buyers from the US or Middle East will now move with low-ball offers nearer the £2.5bn mark.
Tottenham disclosed the share changes to Companies House in October.
New York attorney Damian Williams said: “We allege that for years Joe Lewis abused his access to corporate boardrooms and repeatedly provided inside information to his romantic partners, personal assistants, private pilots and friends.
“Those folks traded on that inside information and made millions of dollars in the stock market.”
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