Redknapp threatened to sue journalist

Harry Redknapp threatened to “sue the bollocks” off a journalist as the football boss and his former employer gave conflicting excuses for an alleged offshore tax fiddle, a court heard yesterday.

The Tottenham Hotspur boss was “feigning ignorance” about his illegal dealings for six years before his arrest, prosecutors claimed. Redknapp was said to have told police “I don’t fiddle” as he and co-defendant Milan Mandaric gave contradicting explanations for the £189,000 (€227,000) “bung”.

The Londoner had earlier told News of the World reporter Rob Beasley that Mandaric “don’t know what he is fucking talking about”.

While Redknapp claimed payments into a Monaco account surrounded transfer profit bonuses, Mandaric claimed the money was a loan “outside of football”, the court heard. Prosecutor John Black QC read out a string of interview transcripts on the second day of Redknapp and Mandaric’s tax evasion trial.

In a 2009 telephone conversation, Redknapp told Beasley he had “the best accountants in England”, claiming the Inland Revenue was fully aware of his dealings in Monaco.

Mr Beasley spoke to Redknapp on the eve of Tottenham taking on Manchester United in the Carling Cup final and two days after calling Mandaric, the former Portsmouth FC chairman.

When Mr Beasley offered Mandaric’s explanation that the money was an investment, Redknapp replied: “He don’t know what he is fucking talking about. What is he talking about? It is a bonus.”

Explaining that the payments surrounded profit made on the sale of Peter Crouch from Portsmouth to Aston Villa, he added: “If it was something dodgy I would have gone over there and brought it back in a briefcase.”

When Mr Beasley asked him whether he had paid any tax in Britain on it, Redknapp replied: “Haven’t been asked to, Rob.”

Redknapp said: “There ain’t nothing crooked in it,” as the conversation went on, the court heard.

“How can it be a bung when the chairman of the football club paid me?”

Redknapp told Beasley if he reported that the manager was taking bungs, he would “sue the bollocks” off him.

Mandaric told Beasley two days earlier: “This is the money for my investment... a way to help Harry for the investment... we had become friends.”

Redknapp declared the account to inspectors less than two weeks before joining Spurs, the prosecution alleged. He said later during police interviews that he thought the account was dormant and did not know Mandaric had put money in. “I was told I wasn’t liable for income tax on so many occasions.” he said. “I pay my tax since I have been in football my entire life. I pay every penny.”

But prosecutors claim he only mentioned the account after he was questioned in the Premier League-led Quest investigation in 2006.

Both Redknapp and Mandaric deny two counts of cheating the public revenue when he was manager of Portsmouth. The first charge alleges that between April 1, 2002, and Nov 28, 2007, Mandaric paid £93,100 into the account. The second charge relates to a sum of £96,300 allegedly paid between May 1 2004 and Nov 28, 2007.

Final whistle

* Portsmouth have been issued with a winding-up petition by HM Revenue and Customs.

HMRC confirmed the petition, over an unpaid tax bill of £1.6 million (€1.9m), has been sent to the troubled club.

“There is little HMRC can do for a business whose viability is dependent either on not paying taxes or on special treatment,” it said.

The extent of Pompey’s latest financial problems were revealed after Italian businessman Joseph Cala pulled out of a deal to buy the club on Friday.

Andrew Andronikou, the joint-administrator of the club’s parent company Convers Sports Initiatives, said the club was unable to pay a bill of £800,000 in December and that another £800,000 payment was due on January 20.

The club has been looking for new owners since Convers went into administration last year.