boabie 230 Posted April 20, 2017 Share Posted April 20, 2017 " Former Rangers owner Craig Whyte has gone on trial accused of a fraudulent acquisition of the club. The 46-year-old faces two charges relating to the 2011 purchase, one of fraud and another under the Companies Act. He has pleaded not guilty to both allegations. Mr Whyte went on trial at the High Court in Glasgow on Thursday after a jury of eight men and seven women was selected. It is alleged that he pretended to then Rangers owner Sir David Murray, and others, that funds were available to make all required payments to acquire a "controlling and majority stake" in the club. The funds included clearing an £18m bank debt, £2.8m for the "small tax case" liability, a £1.7m health-and-safety liability and £5m for the playing squad. The Crown alleges Mr Whyte had only £4m available from two sources at the time but took out a £24m loan from Ticketus against three years of future season ticket sales "which was held subject to an agreement or agreements being entered into between the club and Ticketus after said acquisition". 'Impartial member' The second charge under the Companies Act centres on the £18m payment between Mr Whyte's Wavetower company and Rangers to clear a Bank of Scotland debt. Mr Whyte is being represented by Donald Findlay QC, while Alex Prentice QC is leading the prosecution team. After being picked, Judge Lady Stacey asked the jury to "consider matters" before evidence was to be heard in the case. She said: "There has been some degree of publicity about Mr Whyte and Rangers - putting it at its broadest - over the last number of years. "Do you know Mr Whyte? Do you know anyone personally who may be a witness? "During May 2010 and May 2011 (time of charges), were you a shareholder, bond holder of season ticket holder of Rangers? "Ask yourself is there any good reason why you cannot be an impartial member of this jury." The judge also encouraged jurors to "put out of mind" anything they may have read or heard previously about the case. After a short break, none of the men and women selected had to be excused. The trial continues. " http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-glasgow-west-39654397 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frankie 8,297 Posted April 20, 2017 Share Posted April 20, 2017 This thread will be updated with the latest news surrounding the case. It will remain closed to avoid anyone being found in contempt of court. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frankie 8,297 Posted April 20, 2017 Share Posted April 20, 2017 Worth noting the trial could last up to 2-3 months so there won't be info every day on what's happening. I appreciate unreliable bloggers and crowd-funded court reporters may record their interpretations but we'll stick with more trusted outlets such as STV if and when they publish articles. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frankie 8,297 Posted April 21, 2017 Share Posted April 21, 2017 (edited) Whyte, Walter Smith and Ally McCoist all in court today. Edited April 21, 2017 by Frankie Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frankie 8,297 Posted April 21, 2017 Share Posted April 21, 2017 [tweet]855354017563717632[/tweet] Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frankie 8,297 Posted April 21, 2017 Share Posted April 21, 2017 Ex-Rangers boss Walter Smith takes stand at Whyte trial https://stv.tv/news/west-central/1386368-ex-rangers-boss-walter-smith-takes-stand-at-whyte-trial/ Former Rangers manager Walter Smith has been giving evidence at the trial of ex-club owner Craig Whyte. Mr Smith, 69, was the first witness in the case against Whyte, who is accused of a fraudulent acquisition of the club. He told the High Court in Glasgow about his time managing the team between 1991 and 1998, and then again from 2007 until 2011. During the first day of evidence on Friday, the jury of eight men and seven women heard about the first meeting between Mr Smith and Whyte, 46, shortly before he took over the club in May 2011. The meeting took place in Glasgow and also included former chief executive Martin Bain and former finance director Donald McIntyre. Mr Smith, who identified Whyte in the dock, said the purpose of the meeting was for the prospective owner to ask questions before he went ahead and bought the club. He said: "From Mr Whyte's point of view, he was more interested in the financial aspects of the club. "He asked me towards the end of the meeting what I felt was required for the football team." Mr Smith said he had told Whyte the team required investment. "I felt the team needed a level of freshness," he said. "He seemed to take that in. I was obviously meeting him for the first time and I was leaving as manager. I think he accepted that." The former manager told the court that at the time he was aware of a tax case involving Rangers but was not directly involved. Mr Smith said he was also aware of an overdraft the club had at the time, which he said had reduced over the four years he was in place from about £30m to around £16m when he left, just days after Whyte took over the club. Whyte faces two charges relating to the purchase, one of fraud and another under the Companies Act. It is alleged he pretended to then Rangers owner Sir David Murray, and others, that funds were available to make all required payments to acquire a "controlling and majority stake" in the club - including clearing an £18m bank debt, £2.8m for the "small tax case" liability, a £1.7m health-and-safety liability and £5m for the playing squad. The Crown alleges Mr Whyte had only £4m available from two sources at the time but took out a £24m loan from Ticketus against three years of future season ticket sales "which was held subject to an agreement or agreements being entered into between the club and Ticketus after said acquisition". The second charge under the Companies Act centres on the £18m payment between Mr Whyte's Wavetower company and Rangers to clear a Bank of Scotland debt. Whyte denies both charges. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frankie 8,297 Posted April 24, 2017 Share Posted April 24, 2017 (edited) Donald McIntyre testifies against Craig Whyte: [tweet]856454757019529216[/tweet] Edited April 24, 2017 by Frankie Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frankie 8,297 Posted April 24, 2017 Share Posted April 24, 2017 (edited) [tweet]856495993151533058[/tweet] [tweet]856496261066895360[/tweet] Edited April 24, 2017 by Frankie Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frankie 8,297 Posted April 24, 2017 Share Posted April 24, 2017 Some more comment from STV on today's proceedings so far... https://stv.tv/news/west-central/1386586-craig-whyte-told-rangers-board-he-was-funding-takeover/ Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frankie 8,297 Posted April 24, 2017 Share Posted April 24, 2017 [tweet]856506013637201921[/tweet] Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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