Disgraced Black resigns from Hollinger board

Fallen press baron Conrad Black, the former Daily Telegraph boss, has relinquished his seat on the board of Hollinger International, the Chicago-based publishing company he founded.

Black’s wife, Barbara Amiel Black, also resigned from the board, the company said in a brief statement last night.

Black, who was born in Canada but later renounced his citizenship to become a British lord, was forced out as CEO and chairman of the company after an internal review found that he and several associates had improperly siphoned off millions of dollars from the company.

Hollinger is still trying to recover the money from Black through the courts, but it remains unclear whether they will recover meaningful amounts from him.

Black is also facing legal troubles in Canada, where his holding company Hollinger Inc, a shell company which holds his controlling stock in Hollinger International, is based. Canadian shareholders are trying to wrest control of that company from Black, and Black failed in a bid to take that company private.

At one time, Black’s newspaper holdings included The Telegraph and The Jerusalem Post. Hollinger International still publishes the Chicago Sun-Times and a number of other regional newspapers near Chicago.

Black had moved in powerful circles in the diplomatic world, and the board of Hollinger International included several political figures such as former US secretary of state Henry Kissinger.