Yeung jailed for money laundering

The owner of League Championship football side Birmingham City has been jailed for six years for money laundering.

Hong Kong District Court judge Douglas Yau handed down the sentence to Carson Yeung who was found guilty on Monday over his handling of 721 million Hong Kong dollars (£55.5 million) using five bank accounts between January 2001 and December 2007.

The court had heard that Yeung and his father, who died in 2012, reported no earnings for four or five years between 2001 and 2007 while the vast sums were deposited into their bank accounts.

Some deposits were made by securities firms and a Macau casino company, while others were made by unknown parties, many in cash.

The charges are unrelated to Birmingham City, which the 54-year-old hairdresser-turned-businessman bought in 2009 for £81.5 million.

However the prosecution will apply on April 3 to confiscate £30.7m of Yeung's assets, which has been frozen by a court injunction pending the outcome of the trial.

Birmingham won the 2011 League Cup, ending 48 years without a major trophy, but despite the victory was relegated from the Premier League the same year.

Yeung had already resigned his directorships with Birmingham ahead of the verdict and his stake is now below 30%, ensuring he does not breach Football League rules concerning people convicted of offences involving dishonesty.

The Football League also said "funding arrangements" are in place until at least the end of the season.

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