Former Formula One boss Bernie Ecclestone handed suspended sentence after pleading guilty to fraud

By SYLVIA HUI
Associated Press

LONDON (AP) — Former Formula One boss Bernie Ecclestone has been given a suspended prison sentence after he pleaded guilty to a fraud charge over his failure to declare millions of dollars held in a trust in Singapore. The 92-year-old billionaire agreed a civil settlement of 652.6 million pounds, or $803 million, over funds that were owed to Britain’s tax office over the course of 18 years. Ecclestone was handed a 17-month term, suspended for two years, at Southwark Crown Court in London. That came after he pleaded guilty to a charge that he failed to declare a trust in Singapore with a bank account containing around $650 million to Britain’s government. Ecclestone headed Formula One racing for four decades until he stepped down in 2017.