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Post by rugbytoffee on Mar 10, 2021 19:38:49 GMT
Emiliano Sala's family is taking legal action against the footballer's former club Cardiff City more than two years after his death in a plane crash.
A pre-inquest hearing was taking place into the Argentine footballer's death in Bournemouth on Wednesday.
But the family has also launched civil proceedings against 13 defendants including Cardiff City, the club Sala had signed for just three days before his death and FC Nantes, the French club which sold him for a reported £15m. Daniel Machover, a lawyer for the Sala family, said the high court action had been taken "in order to protect their legal rights and remedies arising from Emiliano's untimely death".
Mr Machover said: "The family have commenced civil proceedings in the High Court, but will seek agreement to stay those proceedings pending the outcome of the inquest. That makes it all the more important for the inquest date to be fixed, so everyone can plan accordingly.
"Most importantly, the family know that the inquest will provide the answers to the very many questions they have about what went wrong in January 2019 and why Emiliano's life was cut short." Sala died when a single-engine Piper Malibu plane carrying the 28-year-old striker crashed into the sea north of Guernsey on 21 January 2019.
The body of the pilot flying the aircraft, David Ibbotson, a 59-year-old from Lincolnshire, has not been recovered.
David Henderson, who is alleged to have arranged the flight, is due to stand trial in October accused of endangering the safety of an aircraft, as well as attempting to discharge a passenger without valid permission or authorisation. The defendants listed in the Sala family's civil action include both football clubs involved, football agent Mark McKay and his father Willie McKay, in addition to the company that owned the plane, its manufacturers and those responsible for its maintenance.
The civil action will not begin until after the full inquest is concluded and the trial of David Henderson has been completed.
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Post by rugbytoffee on Oct 18, 2021 16:23:23 GMT
A man has pleaded guilty to a charge relating to the flight in which footballer Emiliano Sala died. David Henderson, 66, admitted attempting to discharge a passenger without valid permission or authorisation. Henderson, of Hotham in the East Riding of Yorkshire, pleaded guilty to the charge when he asked to be rearraigned on the eve of his trial at Cardiff Crown Court. He is to stand trial accused of endangering the safety of an aircraft, an offence under the Air Navigation Order (2016), which was brought by the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA). A jury of seven men and five women were selected to hear the case after first confirming they were not Cardiff City FC supporters and not regular attendees of matches. Trial judge Mr Justice Foxton warned the jurors they should only discuss the case among themselves when in their jury room. "It is of the greatest importance that you do not talk to anybody about this case, except the 12 of you within the privacy of the jury room, and that includes family and friends and anyone outside your own number," he said. "I don't just mean face to face, I mean WhatsApp, social media, Twitter, Facebook, text messages. "People may be curious about this case but you must not talk to them about it." The judge told the jury he was sending them home and they should return to court for 2pm on Tuesday. The flight carrying 28-year-old Sala and pilot David Ibbotson, 59, crashed north of Guernsey in January 2019. The single-engine Piper Malibu aircraft was bringing the striker to Wales as he was joining Cardiff City in a multimillion-pound transfer deal from French club Nantes.
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Post by rugbytoffee on Nov 12, 2021 14:08:39 GMT
A businessman has been jailed for 18 months over the plane crash that killed £15m footballer Emiliano Sala.
The 28-year-old striker and pilot David Ibbotson, 59, died when the small plane they were flying in entered the English Channel in January 2019. A final report by the Air Accidents Investigation Branch (AAIB) concluded the single-engine Piper Malibu aircraft suffered an in-flight break up while being flown too fast for its design limits.
The aircraft was registered at Gamston Aircraft in Retford.
David Henderson, 67, of Hotham in the East Riding of Yorkshire, was convicted of endangering the safety of the aircraft after a trial at Cardiff Crown Court in October.
Henderson pleaded guilty to another charge of trying to arrange a flight for a passenger without permission or authorisation.
The flight the Argentinian player took was organised by Henderson, who was the plane’s operator, with football agent William “Willie” McKay.
At the time, Sala was involved in a £15 million transfer to Cardiff City from Nantes FC, and was travelling between the two cities when he died. Henderson’s wife wept in court on Friday as Mr Justice Foxton sentenced her husband to 18 months in prison for endangering an aircraft, with a three-month sentence, to run concurrently, for attempting to discharge a passenger.
Mr Justice Foxton said: “I have no doubt you were aware that aspects of your operations were unlawful.
“I am unable to accept your evidence that you were in any way reluctant to organise the flight for William McKay.
“You were only too keen to assist Mr McKay who was a client, and your thoughts soon turned to Mr Ibbotson, even though Mr Ibbotson did not have a licence that permitted him to fly passengers on a commercial basis. “I’m sure you took close interest in the flights, sending numerous messages to Mr Ibbotson, and I’m sure those communications illustrated a lurking doubt in your mind about whether Mr Ibbotson was up to the job.”
He pointed out how Henderson had not raised concerns about Mr Ibbotson’s lack of licence to fly at night, when Sala asked to move the flight to a later time.
“I’m sure you did not raise this because you thought it would be damaging to your business. The only concern you raised was about an increase in cost,” Mr Justice Foxton said.
He said that Henderson’s financial arrangement with Mr McKay “remained opaque”.
“I accept the crash was a hugely distressing experience for you and has had a profound and lasting impact on you.
“Nonetheless, I’m sure in your statement to the CAA you made a number of dishonest statements in an attempt to distance yourself from events.
“In this case, you intentionally breached legislation, disregarded CAA regulations and did so on a premeditated basis and for profit.
“You were reckless and not merely negligent.”
Mr Justice Foxton ruled at the start of the hearing that the victim impact statement of Sala’s mother, Mercedes Taffarel, would not be read out in court after concerns were raised by Henderson’s defence about its contents.
“My decision is not meant to diminish the devastating impact of the crash on Mrs Taffarel,” Mr Justice Foxton said.
Prosecutor Martin Goudie QC had told the judge that Henderson was not “pressured” into organising the flight by Mr McKay, and did so “for financial advantage”.
However, he said Henderson had no previous convictions and was of previous good character.
Stephen Spence QC, defending, told the judge his client did not necessarily profit from the flight and that pressure “could take many forms”.
Mr Spence said: “People speak very highly of him both as a person but, interestingly, as a pilot.”
But he said the crash and subsequent trial had damaged Henderson’s reputation, ridding him of his “life and livelihood”.
Henderson was said to have been affected physically and mentally by the crash and subsequent trial, and is now on beta blockers for a heart condition.
“It has also had a knock-on effect on his wife, who has been in court throughout the proceedings and is in court today,” Mr Spence said.
“At his age and her age they were looking forward to a comfortable and modest retirement. Of course he now faces financial ruin.
“He feels very strongly that he has completely let her down. That is something he finds very, very hard to bear.”
Mr Spence asked that any sentence be suspended.
During the trial the court heard how Henderson had asked Mr Ibbotson to fly the plane, as he was away on holiday in Paris with his wife.
Mr Ibbotson, who flew regularly for Henderson, did not hold a commercial pilot’s licence, a qualification to fly at night, and his rating to fly the single-engine Piper Malibu had expired.
Neither did Henderson have an air operator certificate (AOC), which meant he was not legally allowed to take money for trips.
After finding out the plane had gone down, Henderson texted a number of friends and colleagues telling them to stay silent, warning it would “open a can of worms”.
“Ibbo has crashed the Malibu and killed himself and VIP! Bloody disaster. There will be an enquiry,” he texted one person.
In another message, he wrote: “Questions may be asked about his flying.”
The father-of-three and former RAF officer admitted in court he had feared an investigation into his business dealings.
The jury were told he had failed to ring Mr Ibbotson’s wife, Nora, to which Henderson replied: “I had no number for her.”
Henderson was accused of running a “cowboy outfit” more focused on profit than the safety of his passengers.
In a statement his lawyers said: “Now that the case is concluded in the Crown Court, Mr Henderson wishes to formally pay his respects to the families of Emiliano Sala and David Ibbotson.
“It is important to point out that the Civil Aviation Authority have always accepted that the way in which the flight was arranged and operated did not cause the aircraft to crash.”
He said he would now be considering whether to appeal against the conviction and sentence.
An inquest into Sala’s death is to be held next year.
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Post by rugbytoffee on Mar 17, 2022 18:18:29 GMT
Argentine soccer player Emiliano Sala was “deeply unconscious” after being poisoned by exhaust fumes before dying from severe head and chest injuries in a plane crash in 2019, a jury concluded Thursday.
Sala died when the single-engine Piper Malibu aircraft in which he was traveling crashed in the English Channel. He was flying to join his new team, Cardiff, in Wales after signing from French club Nantes.
The jury at an inquest at Bournemouth Town Hall found that Sala was a passenger on a private plane being flown by a pilot, David Ibbotson, who did not have the correct authority to fly at night.
The plane broke up when it crashed into the sea. Ibbotson's body has never been found.
A pathologist, Dr. Basil Purdue, said Sala had been overcome by “severe poisoning” because of a buildup of carbon monoxide inside the cabin due to the plane’s faulty exhaust system and would have been “deeply unconscious” prior to the aircraft crashing.
Purdue said Sala was still alive at the point of impact and died from severe head and chest injuries.
Pilot and businessman David Henderson managed the aircraft on behalf of its owner and arranged flights, pilots and maintenance, despite not being the legally registered operator.
Henderson was sentenced in November to 18 months in prison, having already been found guilty by a majority verdict of endangering the safety of an aircraft. He had previously admitted to a separate offense of attempting to discharge a passenger without valid permission or authorization.
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Post by rugbytoffee on Jun 30, 2023 16:02:23 GMT
FIFA have ordered Cardiff City to pay the full €17m transfer fee to FC Nantes for the signing of the late Argentine striker Emiliano Sala, according to a report from L’Équipe.
The Bluebirds have been engaged in a bitter feud with Les Canaris for more than four years over their obligation to pay the transfer fee of a player who never played for them. In January 2019, the plane carrying Sala to Cardiff from Nantes on his way to complete his transfer to the Welsh club crashed into the English Channel, near Guernsey.
Cardiff have already paid FC Nantes one-third of the instalments of the transfer. Now, FIFA have ordered to pay the last two instalments worth €11m. Cardiff have now filed a summons with the Nantes commercial court and are seeking €100m plus interest in compensation for “losses incurred“, as they believe Sala may have helped them avoid relegation to Championship.
Cardiff City have confirmed, in an official statement, the news reported by L’Équipe. Although the Welsh club mentions that FC Nantes General director Franck Kita, as well as two players agents heavily linked with the club’s transfer activity, have been lawfully charged on the counts of illegal exercise of sports agent activity, forgery and use of forgery, misuse of corporate assets, laundering of aggravated tax evasion and organised money laundering.
Cardiff City considers “it would have been fairer if the requirement to pay FC Nantes had been deferred until the conclusion of the French police investigations and the club’s claim against FC Nantes in the French courts.”
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