Former Tottenham owner Joe Lewis 'will plead GUILTY to insider trading'
Joe Lewis, the British billionaire whose family trust owns a majority share in Premier League soccer club Tottenham Hotspur, will reportedly plead guilty to passing inside information to his private pilots and girlfriend on Wednesday.
The 86-year-old was slated to re-appear in a New York courtroom this month over his alleged role in a 'brazen' insider trading scheme.
Lewis, whose fortune is estimated to be worth $6.1billion, pleaded not guilty to 19 counts of insider trading and conspiracy in a Manhattan courtroom back in July. But on Wednesday, according to Bloomberg, he will change his plea.
Lewis surrendered to the FBI before being released on $300million bond, secured by his superyacht Aviva - which is worth $250million - and personal aircraft.
He was ordered to hand over his passport and told he could not leave the United States.
Lewis faced accusations of 'orchestrating a brazen insider trading scheme' by passing on tips about companies to friends, personal assistants, private pilots and romantic partners.
The alleged crimes are said to have taken place between 2013 and 2021, when Lewis was Spurs’ owner.
Lewis appeared in federal court on July 26, along with two of his pilots and co-defendants - Patrick O'Connor and Bryan Waugh. They are suspected of making millions of dollars in illegal profit from Lewis' tips. They, too, pleaded not guilty.
The hearing saw the billionaire charged with 16 counts of securities fraud and three counts of conspiracy. The charges each carry a maximum prison sentence of between five and 25 years.
O’Connor, from New York, and Waugh, from Virginia, each face seven counts of securities fraud and one count of conspiracy.
Lewis’ Tavistock Group has investments across more than 200 companies and 13
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