King stands his ground to pursue Ibrox dream: Former Gers director close to return ★
Monday 28 October, 2013
Fact Howler 1: by Stephen McGowan of the Daily Mail on Dave King:
The Castlemilk-born tycoon had charges of fraud and money laundering lowered by the South African tax authorities in August in return for a plea bargain, which saw him pay £43.7m whilst accepting culpability for 41 charges of breaching the South African Income Tax Act.
Offered the choice of paying £210,000 or an 82-year jail term under section 75 of the act, he opted to pay the cash.
Dave King is a convicted criminal. The South African Tax authorities did not “lower” his charges – he pled guilty to various contraventions of section 75 of the South Africa Income Tax Act 58 of 1962 in order to avoid a lengthy court case, and a prison sentence.
He was fined accordingly, based on the sentencing agreement his legal team reached with the South Africa National Prosecuting Authority.
Fact Howler 2: One cannot be a “South African based businessman”. The correct usage would be “South Africa-based businessman”.
Fact Howler 3: in the headline, King is referred to as “Former Gers director”. He is not a former Rangers director, he was a director of the former Rangers.
Fact Howler 4: Dave King was forced to pay a verified figure of R706.7 (South African Rand), which equates to £44.54m in current money, not £43.7m
See also: The Herald’s Richard Wilson describing Dave King’s criminal conviction as “minor breaches of the Income Tax Act“.
If paying out £44.54m in South Africa’s biggest-ever tax case is minor, I’d hate to see a major case.
Tags: daily mail, dave king, rangers, richard wilson, stephen mcgowan