According to reports, former England striker Emile Heskey has been caught up in a multi-million-pound legal battle over a 'fraudulent' business deal to buy a football club.
It should first be noted that Heskey is not accused of any wrongdoing, but he was the high-profile face of a British businessman's deal to buy a stake in a professional Cypriot football club. Last year, Craig Gabriel was set to invest £15m into Apollon Limassol – who once signed ex-Man United star Wes Brown – but things have since gone wrong, leading to action in the UK High Court.
Heskey played 62 times for England, scoring seven goals, as he became a cult Premier League figure at the likes of Liverpool, Leicester City, Aston Villa, Wigan, and Birmingham before retiring in 2016. Financial troubles, however, have followed him in the years since.
Gabriel and Heskey visited leading Cypriot club Apollon Limassol in August, and the pair were pictured as they took to the pitch at the 10,000-capacity stadium. As per the Daily Mail, Heskey had been lined up to be director of football at the club once the deal had been fully completed.
No deal was ever completed, though, as according to High Court documents, Gabriel backed out of the deal have previously told club representatives that he was worth nearly £500m. Apollon, who have competed in the Europa League and the Europa Conference League before, are now suing Gabriel through the Cyprus courts for £8m for breach of contract and fraudulent misrepresentation.
The club have also launched action in the UK High Court, and while Heskey is not the subject of any allegations of wrongdoing, Apollon and their lawyers want to question him about his involvement and what Gabriel told him. Nikos Kirzis, Apollon president, said:
"Gabriel visited Apollon a number of times with Heskey, and we are keen to reach out to Heskey in respect of what he knew about Gabriel's purported plans for the club and whether Gabriel also misrepresented his wealth and ability to invest in the club to Heskey."
According to the claim, Gabriel is said to have represented himself as a multi-millionaire investor prepared to invest £15m in Apollon. The claim states: "(Gabriel) stated his wealth was £425m, almost all of which was the value…of his company…Redhat Capital. That value included emeralds…with a value of £250m.'
After a series of investment instalments failed to transpire, however, the club then won freezing orders against Gabriel in the Cyprus and UK courts. Gabriel, according to the court documents, made 'fraudulent misrepresentations about his financial means and ability to invest.'
The 56-year-old businessman, from Chester, later admitted in legal disclosures, that he had no more than £540,000 in assets, according to the claim.
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Emile Heskey looks on at the King Power Stadium, Leicester, Britain
Heskey was approached for comment by Daily Mail but has yet to speak out. The Englishman was declared bankrupt in 2010 and 2024, having had his own financial issues in the past.
Believed to be worth £12 million back in 2009, Heskey's issues stemmed from when he had joined a 'celebrity investment scheme,' which led to him owing in excess of £1.5 million to the taxman.
He was consequently hit with a High Court bankruptcy petition filed by HMRC, and it was later found that he had defaulted on £92,000 of tax while working as a football development officer between 2017 and 2020. He was forced to pay a fine of £42,000 as a result.
Gabriel has offered his own version of events, claiming that he pulled the deal because Apollon directors had failed to provide 'correct' financial information, and because of 'mismanagement' was in 'dire financial straits'. He said:
"Forget the nonsense 'Mr Gabriel didn't have the money'. It is a smoke screen.
"You do not go looking to buy clubs without the money or the backing to do so or involve people like Emile Heskey who is a good friend."
Gabriel claimed that he did not object to the freezing order because he did not have time to prepare a defence and because of a family bereavement. He added: "The main fight will be in Cyprus, which will be interesting."
A spokesman for Mr Gabriel added that he had "initially agreed to purchase the club…(but) pulled out… when he discovered the club to be in a very much worse financial position.
"The freezing order made by the High Court was agreed by Mr Gabriel, as he has nothing to hide and has no intention of dissipating his assets."
The statement concluded: "Mr Gabriel is confident that he will be vindicated in the court proceedings."