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Tennis star Becker used business account as ‘piggy bank’, court hears

AFP

Six-time Grand Slam champion Boris Becker used his business account as a “piggy bank” to pay for luxury shopping expenses and school fees, a British court was told on Tuesday.

Becker is on trial charged with 24 offences relating to his 2017 bankruptcy over a £3.5 million ($4.6 million) loan from private bank Arbuthnot Latham for a property in Spain.

Despite his financial difficulties, the 54-year-old German spent hundreds of pounds at luxury London department store Harrods and treated himself to designer clothes, a jury at Southwark Crown Court in London heard.

The former world number one is alleged to have hidden 1.13 million euros ($1.25 million) from the sale of a Mercedes car dealership he owned in Germany, which was paid into his Boris Becker Private Office (BBPOL) account.

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“It is the prosecution case that Mr Becker used the BBPOL sterling account as an extension of his own account, effectively as his own piggy bank, for everyday personal expenses such as school fees for the children and suchlike,” said prosecutor Rebecca Chalkley.

Chalkley said payments in 2017 included £643 to Polo Ralph Lauren, £7,600 for school fees and £976 to Harrods.

Jurors heard Becker paid substantial sums to ex-wife Barbara Becker, estranged wife Sharlely “Lilly” Becker and a friend.

Becker was also said to have transferred 300,000 euros to his own account, while other funds went into an account he jointly held with his son Noah.

The German is also accused of failing to hand over assets including his 1985 and 1989 Wimbledon men’s singles trophies and his Australian Open silverware from 1991 and 1996.

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He allegedly failed to declare two German properties, as well as his interest in a London flat, and hid an 825,000-euro bank loan.

Becker, who won 49 singles titles during his 16-year playing career, is being supported in court by his partner Lilian de Carvalho Monteiro.

He denies all the charges against him, which include nine counts of failing to deliver up trophies and other awards.

The trial is expected to last for up to three weeks.

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Tehran engulfed in toxic cloud after strikes on fuel facilities

Tehran woke up under a sky that shifted from gray to black following strikes on fuel infrastructure, as the city has become engulfed in a toxic cloud that is turning daily life into a public health and environmental emergency.

Residents warn that what is falling from the sky is no longer just rain, but a mixture of oil and pollutants. Attacks on fuel depots have triggered prolonged fires, releasing thick plumes of smoke that continue to spread across the العاصمة.

For several days, facilities have remained ablaze, while a dark layer has settled over streets, homes, and even water reserves. Authorities have urged the population—more than nine million people—to remain indoors, especially vulnerable groups.

The extreme toxicity is linked to mazut, a dense petroleum byproduct with high sulfur content still used in Iran due to industrial limitations and sanctions. When burned, it releases hazardous particles that, when combined with moisture, result in contaminated rainfall.

The situation is worsened by Tehran’s geography. Surrounded by mountains, the city is affected by a temperature inversion phenomenon that traps pollutants near the ground, preventing their dispersion and creating a stagnant layer of toxic air over the population.

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Residents have reported symptoms such as eye and skin irritation, headaches, and respiratory difficulties. Emergency agencies have also warned of potential chemical burns caused by acid rain.

Long-term concerns are mounting, as prolonged exposure to fine particles and heavy metals could lead to serious health conditions, including lung damage and cancer.

Contamination is also spreading to water sources and agricultural land, threatening the food supply in a country already facing water scarcity.

At a regional level, the environmental impact is expanding, with oil spills reported in the Persian Gulf, affecting marine ecosystems and fishing communities.

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FBI Most Wanted Fugitive Arrested in Mexico and Deported to U.S.

Authorities in Mexico announced Thursday that Samuel Ramírez Jr., a U.S. citizen accused of murdering two women and listed among the FBI’s Ten Most Wanted Fugitives, was arrested in the northern state of Sinaloa.

Ramírez Jr., 33, was detained Tuesday in Culiacán just 1 hour and 13 minutes after being added to the Federal Bureau of Investigation Ten Most Wanted list, the agency said in a statement.

The suspect, who was born in California, has already been deported to the U.S. state of Washington, where he faces charges related to the fatal shooting of two women at a bar in Federal Way in May 2023.

A court issued an arrest warrant for Ramírez in November last year, and the FBI initially offered a $25,000 reward for information leading to his capture, later increasing the amount to up to $1 million.

“To protect individuals’ privacy and ensure continued cooperation from the public, the FBI does not confirm the identity of those who provide information,” the agency said in its statement.

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UN experts warn Nicaragua runs vast transnational network to monitor exiled dissidents

Nicaragua maintains an “extensive” transnational network to monitor and intimidate opposition figures living in exile, affecting “hundreds of thousands” of people, the United Nations Group of Human Rights Experts on Nicaragua warned on Tuesday.

In a statement, the experts said their report “details an extensive transnational architecture of surveillance and intelligence used to monitor, intimidate and attack the hundreds of thousands of Nicaraguans living abroad.”

The report, which will be presented on March 16 to the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva, states that the structure maintained by the government of Daniel Ortega and Rosario Murillo includes the army, the police, migration authorities and diplomatic missions.

According to the statement, “the government has arbitrarily stripped 452 Nicaraguans of their nationality, left thousands more exiled in a situation of de facto statelessness, and prevented many from returning to Nicaragua.”