Why has Boris Becker been jailed? From 6-time Grand Slam champion to a 15-month jail sentence
The Southwark Crown Court in London sentenced former ATP player Boris Becker to a two-and-a-half year prison sentence on Friday, out of which he will spend half in jail according to UK laws.
The sentence was given to the German after he was found guilty of withholding assets from investigators during his bankruptcy trial. Although Becker won more than $25 million in prize money during his career and much more in endorsement deals, the six-time Grand Slam champion claimed that child support, divorce and a post-retirement drop in earnings led to him going broke.
Tennis great Boris Becker has been sentenced to 2 1/2 years in prison for illicitly transferring large amounts of money and hiding assets after he was declared bankrupt. apne.ws/xKBRIPr
So how did someone who won six Grand Slams and led Novak Djokovic to another six Majors across an enviable career end up at this point? Let's take a look, all the way from the very beginning of Boris Becker's rise to stardom:
Boris Becker won the 1985 Wimbledon as an unseeded player
Boris Becker burst onto the scene as a 17-year-old, winning the 1985 Wimbledon as an unseeded player. In only his second full season on the ATP Tour, the German became the youngest player to win a Major -- a record eventually broken by Michael Chang in 1989.
Becker defended his title the following year, this time defeating top seed Ivan Lendl in the final as the fourth seed. The former World No. 1 won Wimbledon once again and the US Open in 1989 followed by the Australian Open in 1991, the latter of which helped him ascend to the top of the ATP rankings.
Unfortunately, The 54-year-old's career suffered after that, mainly due to a tumultuous marriage (with actress/model Barbara Feltus) that eventually resulted in a divorce and a $14. 4 million settlement that went in his wife's favor.
Just a reminder that in June 1989 @TheBorisBecker played and won the Wirral International Tennis Tournament in West Kirby and immediately handed over his £25,000 winnings to the Hillsborough Disaster Appeal Fund https://t.co/QmZxiUshLg
Boris Becker mounted a small comeback in 1996 to win his sixth and final Grand Slam, defeating Yevgeny Kafelnikov, Mark Woodforde and Michael Chang on the trot to win the Australian Open. Overall, the German reached four more Slam finals and 10 additional semifinals before hanging up his racquet in 1999.
By the time of his retirement, the six-time Grand Slam champion had racked up 49 singles and 15 doubles ATP Tour titles, including 13 Masters level events and four year-end championships.
Since then, the former World No. 1 has embarked on a host of different career options, such as starting his own clothing line, serving as a commentator and analyst for various platforms and as a member of German football club Bayern Munich's economic advisory board.
But his most prominent role post-playing days came as Novak Djokovic's coach, with whom he achieved the Career Grand Slam. The German led Djokovic to two Australian Open and Wimbledon titles, as well as one French Open and US Open title each.
Under Becker's tutelage, the Serb also triumphed in two ATP Tour Finals and 14 Masters 1000 events, making him one of the most successful coaches on the men's circuit.
Why was Boris Becker jailed over a bankruptcy dispute claim?
The question that has often been posited on social media is this: how come Boris Becker has received such a harsh jail term for a non-violent civil dispute like a bankruptcy charge?
Boris Becker decision is insane. Make him do community service (giving talks and free tennis lessons). A waste of taxpayer’s money putting him in jail for two years.
Speaking in an earlier interview, an insolvency expert claimed that it was indeed very rare for people to be jailed for this particular offense. He was of the opinion, therefore, that the six-time Grand Slam champion must have been exceptionally uncooperative during the investigation.
"Make no mistake, being found guilty in a criminal court of bankruptcy offenses is quite rare. Most people, when bankrupted, cooperate with the bankruptcy process, at least to a degree that doesn’t result in criminal charges being brought and proved," Alex Jay said. "The level of Mr. Boris Becker’s attempts to frustrate the process, and avoid repaying his creditors, must therefore have been quite exceptional.”
Becker's offending has been valued at more than £2.5m by the prosecution.
- £390,000 transferred to others
- £1.053m German property
- £1.1m loan and interest
- £75,000 shares in a tech company
The German reportedly withheld assets amounting to the tune of more than £2.5 million, including a property in Germany and shares in a tech company. While his lawyers have argued repeatedly that he only listened to expert advice and that he settled all other household and legal debts, the defense attorney wanted a strong punishment to prevent similar copycats in the future.
Prosecutor Rebecca Chalkley urged the judge to pass a deterrent sentence on Becker:
Accused him of “playing the system with bad faith”, she said: "The process only works if they are honest and make full disclosure.”
"He deliberately and dishonestly removed money and transferred it to various third parties, with the intention of removing money from the estate and as a consequence away from recovery and their creditors," prosecutor Rebecca Chalkley argued against Becker. "Bankrupts have a built-in advantage as the details of his affairs are known better by him than by the official receiver or trustees. The process only works if they are honest and make full disclosure.”
According to Tristan Kirk, Courts correspondent for the London Evening Standard, the sum involved in the charge, as well as Becker's "deliberate" lack of honesty in not fully disclosing all assets, were the major reason for the harsh sentence.
"A prison term was almost inevitable here due to the value of the assets involved, but more importantly because he tried to cheat the bankruptcy system. It's a process that relies heavily on honesty," Kirk tweeted. "Those caught out hide assets face severe penalties as a deterrent to others."
A prison term was almost inevitable here due to the value of the assets involved, but more importantly because he tried to cheat the bankruptcy system.
It's a process that relies heavily on honesty. Those caught out hide assets face severe penalties as a deterrent to others
It should be noted that the 54-year-old was previously convicted of tax evasion in 2002 in Germany and sentenced to two years in jail, but the execution of the sentencing was suspended back then. Instead, Boris Becker got away with just paying a fine of almost half a million euros.