SOCCER AGENT CLEARED OF SENDING THREATENING EMAIL TO CHELSEA DIRECTOR OVER ZOUMA FEE

(Reuters) - Football agent Saif Rubie has been found not guilty of demanding a six-figure commission for the transfer of French defender Kurt Zouma from Chelsea to West Ham United, British media reported on Monday.

Rubie was on trial over an email sent to Chelsea's former director of football Marina Granovskaia in May 2022 allegedly demanding 300,000 pounds ($375,720) commission for the transfer of Zouma a year earlier.

The 45-year-old was cleared of the charges on Monday at Southwark crown court.

"I’m relieved, my life has been hell for the last two years so I’m glad this chapter is over," Rubie told Sky Sports News. "It’s been horrible to have been accused of something you didn’t do and for it to have got this far.

"Anything in relation to what was going on is now in the hands of my lawyers going forward."

($1 = 0.7985 pounds)

(Reporting by Shifa Jahan in Bengaluru; Editing by Peter Rutherford)

2024-04-30T07:18:01Z dg43tfdfdgfd