Waterford FC Chairman Andy Pilley to be sentenced on July 3 over fraud charges

The 52-year-old appeared before Preston Crown Court on Tuesday for a pre-sentence hearing.

TO BE SENTENCED: Andy Pilley buying Waterford FC, on Tuesday 16 August 2022. Photo by Sam Fielding / SLF Studios

Waterford Chairman Andy Pilley will be sentenced on July 3 for the fraud charges he was found guilty of last Friday in an English court in relation to allegations of mis-selling energy supplies.

The 52-year-old, whose interest in football clubs began by bankrolling Fleetwood Town’s rise from the lower reaches of the Conference to League One, appeared before Preston Crown Court on Tuesday for a pre-sentence hearing.

Last Friday he was found guilty of two counts of running his energy business with the intention of defrauding creditors, one count of false representations, and another of being concerned with the retention of criminal property.

According to the court report in the Lancashire Post, Pilley’s defence lawyer informed His Honour Judge Knowles KC that his client wanted to be sentenced as “quickly as possible” as his situation was “far from ideal”. He remains remanded in custody till July 3.

Waterford owner Andy Pilley at the RSC. Photo by Michael P Ryan/Sportsfile

His Honour Knowles queried with the prosecution if the sums taken in the fraud amounted to thousands or millions and in reply, while an exact amount could not be obtained yet, it was believed to be in the £15 million ballpark.

When further asked if the Crown was likely to hold in law that the quality of goods at Pilley’s surroundings could amount to this unless proven otherwise, she responded “yes”.

Both Fleetwood and Waterford released statements following the verdict adopting a business-as-usual approach, noting contingencies for this potential eventuality was planned for.

“Waterford FC would like to reassure supporters the club will continue to operate as normal and there will be no risk to the future of the club,” said the club Pilley purchased from Richard Forrest last August. They are second in the table, 10 points off Galway United situated in the automatic promotion berth.

The English Football League authorities said: “The EFL notes today’s guilty verdict by the court in respect of the case involving Fleetwood Town Chairman Andy Pilley.

“The League will now discuss the implications of the decision with officials at the Club in the context of the Owners’ and Directors’ Test.”

There is no equivalent vetting system in place by the FAI.