Overseas property lawyer accuses football boss of theft

Darragh MacAnthony Photograph: Tony Marshall/EMPICS Sport

A well known football boss has been accused of ‘theft by swindle and misappropriation of funds’ by a leading overseas property lawyer after hundreds of clients allegedly lost money estimated at around £13 million.

Darragh MacAnthony, the Dublin born owner of Peterborough Football Club, faces legal action in Spain over the claims.

Brits lost half a million pounds in undelivered furniture from company

MacAnthony, whose Peterborough side have just won promotion to the Championship, established MacAnthony Realty International (MRI) in Marbella around ten years ago.  The company was hugely popular with Brits looking to buy property in Spain and also offered homes in Morocco, Cape Verde and Bulgaria.  At its peak, MRI boasted a turnover in excess of £100 million.

However, the Daily Mail reports that ‘MacAnthony, 35, and his former joint chief executives, Michael Liggan and Dominic Pickering, have been accused of ‘theft by swindle and misappropriation of funds’ in a claim filed in Madrid by sixty British and Irish claimants who say they lost more than half a million pounds in undelivered furniture five years ago.’

The leading Spanish property lawyers Lawbird are handling the claim, through Marbella based overseas property lawyer Antonio Flores.  Flores has accused MacAnthony of failing in an obligation to file for insolvency for his Spanish companies.

MRI bosses deny any wrongdoing

The Peterborough chairman has repeatedly denied any wrongdoing.  He told the Daily Mail: “There are no foundations behind these allegations. I certainly didn’t do anything wrong and neither did anyone with MRI when I was there.”

The newspaper reports that ‘the allegations made in Spain follow what Northern Ireland MP Sammy Wilson described in the House of Commons last year as a property fraud where MRI, or related companies such as MRI Overseas Property, acted as the developer.’