Uli Hoeness begins prison sentence for tax evasion
By John-Paul Tooth
Jun 2, 2014 3:44:00 PM
The former Bayern Munich president started serving his three and a half year jail term on Monday, 81 days after his conviction for avoiding paying €28.5 million
Former Bayern Munich president Uli Hoeness has begun his prison sentence for tax evasion.
The 62-year-old's lawyers confirmed on Monday that he had started serving his three and a half year jail term - for avoiding paying €28.5 million in tax - in Landsberg prison, 70km west of Munich, 81 days after his conviction.
Hoeness was sentenced on March 13 by the Munich District Court for failing to pay tax on the income, earned from a secret Swiss bank account.
He had hoped that volunteering disclosure of the income would lead to leniency and a suspended sentence.
The three-time European Cup winner as a player last made a public appearance on May 10 at Bayern's final game of the season - a 1-0 home victory over Stuttgart - after they had won the domestic title with seven games to spare.
A week earlier Hoeness had announced at an emergency general meeting, where he had resigned as president and chairman of the supervisory board, that he would return to the club after serving his sentence.
"I made a huge mistake and I will accept the consequences for this. When I'm back, I'm not going to retire. That's not yet," he had said.